Destiny
by sakuraakamichelle
Summary: Final Chapter is up! A young princess fled from her castle for safety and was picked up by someone whom she did not know. Everyone wanted her family's treasure, knowing that it possessed great powers. The princess could not allow that...
1. Prologue

This is the shortest fic I have ever written. Hope all of you do not mind. Do not expect every chapter to be as long as each part of Wishes Do Come True but I will try to make some chapters longer. This fic is thus named.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
DESTINY  
  
PROLOGUE  
  
BY SAKURA AKA MICHELLE  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
DISCLAIMER: Cardcaptor Sakura belongs to CLAMP. but this plot belongs to ME!  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
"Run now! Princess Sakura!" The knight urged and pushed Sakura out of the castle through the backdoor as the enemies were pouring in through the front one. "Hurry!"  
  
The six year old emerald eyed princess shook her head stubbornly, "What about the rest? Are they coming too?"  
  
The knight looked back over his shoulders anxiously, knowing that their enemies could be there any moment. He knelt down on one knee and patted Sakura's hair, "Listen now Princess. once you are out there, please hide. Do not look back, understand, dear?"  
  
"Why?" The innocent princess asked.  
  
"Just don't look back. Take your family treasure with you and let no one know about it and who you are," he handed her a book and a necklace. "Now go!"  
  
He gave her a nudge to get her to start moving and of course, she complied, running on her unstable legs, with the knight watching her with tearful eyes.  
  
I am sorry princess. This is the best thing we have thought of.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Sakura panted and wondered if she was supposed to stop now that she had ran quite a fair distance. Clutching the book the knight had given her, she made the mistake of looking back at her castle. Her once beautiful and elegant castle was engulfed in flames.  
  
A scream tore from her chest as she stared helplessly at her castle. She started to sob.  
  
Remember daughter dear, when you are out of the protection of the castle walls alone, put these lenses on your eyes to hide your true eye colour. Sakura remembered her father, King Kinomoto Fujitaka telling her. Only the royal blood have either brown or emerald eye.  
  
She searched her pockets of her nightgown for the lenses her father had often reminded her. They were for protection of her identity. She wasted no time after finding them and put them on her eyes, blinking at the irritation the lenses had caused. Putting the book in her pocket, Sakura pushed herself up from the ground and started wandering about, not knowing where to go.  
  
A sudden movement from her right brought her whirling towards it. She was a scant second too late; she felt herself being hit on her head and fainting from the pain the hit had inflicted.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
"Syaoran, I hit something!" Meiling shouted excitedly. "Hear that?"  
  
"Shouldn't we go back now?" The latter groaned as he tried to catch up with the excited Meiling. "My mother is waiting for us at the inn and it is really very late now."  
  
The two had been trying to catch some birds. Actually, it was Meiling's idea and Syaoran's mother, Li Yelan, granted her the permission and ordered Syaoran to go with her. Groomed in the Li clan, Syaoran was not allowed to disobey the Elders and there he was, suffering under Meiling's childishness.  
  
"Can I take the bird before we go?" Meiling pleaded.  
  
Syaoran sighed, partly from frustration and partly from boredom, "As you wish."  
  
Meiling did not mean to shriek when she saw the result of her "bird- catching" but it seemed that she was too horrified with what she had done.  
  
A young girl about her own age lay on the ground a few feet in front of her, her right forehead bleeding. Syaoran came running to Meiling when he heard her shout.  
  
"What now?" he asked when he saw Meiling saw.  
  
"I did not mean to kill her with the rock I threw! I was aiming at the bird on the tree!"  
  
Syaoran checked the girl's pulse and heaved a sigh of relieve, it was still there and beating steadily. "She is alive. You are not a murderer."  
  
He gently shook the girl and heard her groaned. He froze, thinking that he had somehow jarred her injury. Black eyes stared into amber eyes and the black one widened with shock and surprise. She jerked back instantly and shut her eyes against the dizziness that her movements had caused. "Who. are you?"  
  
"Don't move yet," Syaoran warned. "You are still bleeding."  
  
The girl looked at Meiling's pale expression and took pity on her. She tried to joke, "Do I look that bad to the two of you?"  
  
Syaoran did nothing but forced the girl from standing up. "You are not ready yet. I am Li Syaoran and you are?"  
  
"Sakura."  
  
"The princess?" Meiling asked curiously.  
  
"Er. no. I am not the princess. I am.just and orphan," Sakura lied."  
  
"I am sorry," Meiling apologized.  
  
Sakura waved a hand at her and tried to smile, "It is nothing."  
  
Syaoran stood up suddenly and spoke, "I think it is best that we bring Sakura to the inn to have her injuries treated. Agree?"  
  
"Agreed," Meiling said, beaming at her new companion. 


	2. Chapter 1

IN THE LAST CHAPTER:  
  
Syaoran stood up suddenly and spoke, "I think it is best that we bring Sakura to the inn to have her injuries treated. Agree?"  
  
"Agreed," Meiling said, beaming at her new companion.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
DESTINY  
  
CHAPTER 1  
  
BY SAKURA AKA MICHELLE  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Sakura felt uneasy under the scrutiny of Li Yelan, Syaoran's mother. She clung to Meiling for support as she was still feeling dizzy. Syaoran did the introductions for them though, much to the disapproval of Yelan.  
  
"How can you mingle with the lowly peasant?" Yelan scolded.  
  
Lowly peasant? Sakura thought and looked at herself. Indeed, she looked like the lowly peasant Yelan was mentioning. Her nightgown was torn from her earlier run and stained with mud. Her hair was tangled and in a mess. Sakura looked down and avoided eye contact with Yelan.  
  
"But mother." Syaoran protested but was cut off.  
  
"You are a prince for God's sake, son. You know perfectly that you are not supposed to interact with people from the lower class."  
  
Syaoran's hands were fisted. Clearly, he was angry by the reply he got from his mother. He was about to launch another protest but Sakura stopped him, "It wasn't worth it. Just pretend you did not meet me today. Goodbye, Prince Li."  
  
Sakura left Meiling's support and walked away from them unsteadily. The floor seemed to spin beneath her and her vision was getting more blur with each step she took.  
  
"Aunt Yelan, I have injured her," Meiling confessed. "Shouldn't we at least treat her before leaving. It is our responsibility."  
  
Yelan looked at Meiling, her chest swelled with pride for her niece. "At least someone know what responsibility is," she stated with a smile. "Go get her back and call for a physician."  
  
Syaoran did not hesitate to run after Sakura and pulled her back, despite her protests and struggles. "You don't have to go through so much trouble for me, Prince Li. It is just a scratch and I can take care of myself."  
  
"We injured you," Syaoran interjected. "So we have the responsibility to take care of you until you are fit enough on your own."  
  
"But."  
  
"As I have told you, it is our responsibility or we will feel guilty about it."  
  
"Since you have already put it in that way." Sakura sighed and gave up.  
  
She was set onto the bed in a room while they waited for the arrival of the physician. Her face went pale upon seeing him - the physician. He used to work for the Kinomoto castle and as soon as he saw Sakura, he dropped to his knees and bowed his head in respect. Yelan, Syaoran and Meiling could only gape at the scene before them.  
  
"It is a pleasure to meet you again, Princess."  
  
Sakura faked a laugh and tried to act confused, "You must have mistaken, sir. I am not the princess. Didn't you know that the Princess have emerald eyes? Mine is black."  
  
The physician, known as Hikaru, did look up and saw Sakura shaking her head desperately. He understood immediately and quickly rose up, "Why yes. I remember now. I apologize for have mistaken you for the princess, little girl."  
  
Sakura smiled sweetly and nodded her head. "Can you hurry and tend to her wound? We have to hurry back."  
  
"Yes, Milady. Could you please wait outside while I tend to her? I am not used to having people staring at my back during my consultation."  
  
"Of course," Yelan agreed and practically pulled Meiling, together with Syaoran out of the room.  
  
Hikaru shut the door before he spoke to Sakura, "Princess, what are you going to do next? I heard about the fire."  
  
Sakura sobered and said, "I knew no other relatives of mine besides the Daijoujis but the problem is I do not know where they are staying."  
  
Hikaru smiled and his eyes twinkled, "I know and I can even bring you there by your command, Princess."  
  
"How nice of you Hikaru-sensei but I rather you inform me of their whereabouts."  
  
"They, the Daijoujis I mean, are in Hong Kong," Hikaru replied with a shake of his head. "In order to reach Hong Kong, one must go by sea."  
  
Sakura gasped, "It is too far. Is there other choices than going to the Daijoujis?"  
  
"Yes." Hikaru answered hesitatedly. "I am afraid Your Highness will have to follow the Lis until the castle is rebuilt and the rebels are got rid of. That is the safest."  
  
Sakura remained silent while contemplating her thoughts, "I have no other choices."  
  
Hikaru knelt down on the floor once again in front of Sakura and put his hands in front of his chest, "I prayed for you safety, Princess."  
  
"Erm. Hikaru-sensei?"  
  
"Yes Your Highness?"  
  
Sakura pointed to her wounded forehead and smiled sheepishly that made Hikaru's heart ache. "I think it is best to clean it up before they barged in."  
  
"Sure, Your Highness."  
  
"You can just call me Sakura, Hikaru-sensei. I have you this permission a long time ago."  
  
"It would not be appropriate, Your Highness," Hikaru explained.  
  
Sakura sighed and winced as Hikaru applied some oil on her wound. She began thinking about the future and when will the new of the fire be brought to her parents, who were touring about the world. It would take years to rebuild the castle and get rid of the rebels. She sighed and thought It is still a long long way to go. I guess this is my destiny.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
How is this chapter? Pretty short eh? Will Yelan agree to bring Sakura back to their country? Stay tuned to the next chapter for the answers. Any suggestions please mail me. 


	3. Chapter 2

IN THE LAST CHAPTER:  
  
Sakura sighed and winced as Hikaru applied some oil on her wound. She began thinking about the future and when will the new of the fire be brought to her parents, who were touring about the world. It would take years to rebuild the castle and get rid of the rebels. She sighed and thought It is still a long long way to go. I guess this is my destiny.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
DESTINY  
  
CHAPTER 2  
  
BY SAKURA AKA MICHELLE  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Hikaru had already left the room to speak to Yelan, leaving Sakura in the room. She blinked several times to ease the discomfort in her eyes and longed to tear the lenses from her eyes. Her eyes began to water from the irritation and Sakura rubbed her eyes.  
  
The door creaked open and Meiling stepped in, "I am sorry for injuring you."  
  
"Don't take it to heart; it was just a minor scratch. It will heal in a few days time," Sakura soothed.  
  
"Can I do anything to help you?"  
  
Sakura shook her head frantically and smiled, "You have shown me great kindness by bringing me a physician to treat my wounds. I would not dare to ask for more."  
  
Meiling looked as if she was about to cry and Sakura panicked, "But I. But I."  
  
"Perhaps you can bring me a clean dress?" Sakura suggested, hoping to make Meiling feel better.  
  
She brightened up instantly, "Would you mind if I give you some of mine?"  
  
"Of course not!" Sakura answered. "As long as I have something to keep me warm."  
  
Yelan entered before Meiling could reply and stared at Sakura in such a way that made Sakura shiver, "I have decided to bring you with me. The physician had offered to come with us to look after you until you have fully recovered."  
  
"Why?" Sakura croaked out.  
  
Yelan smiled and patted Sakura's head, "I have heard that you are an orphan and I longed to have another daughter.  
  
"But you already have four!" Syaoran protested.  
  
"Oh. I almost forgot about having four daughters. Alright then, just let me take care of you, little girl. Be a guest in our castle."  
  
Sakura saw Hikaru nodding his head in agreement. She could not deny that this was a good choice, "I agree with you. Thank you so much, Queen Li," Sakura said and curtsied gracefully to her.  
  
Meiling gasped and exclaimed, "You are very good at that! Where did you learn that from?"  
  
"Hoe?"  
  
"She was talking about the curtsy, dear girl," Yelan explained.  
  
Hikaru's frown told her that it would not be good to answer them honestly. "Someone taught me," Sakura lied, trying her best not to blink or show any signs of lying.  
  
Meiling clapped Sakura's hands in hers so suddenly that made Sakura jump up in surprise, "Could you teach me how to curtsy properly without falling flat on the face when you are better?"  
  
"Of course!" Sakura noticed that Syaoran was left out in the conversations and attempted to change topic, "Prince Li, may I know how Hong Kong looked like?"  
  
Sakura looked surprised by her question and actually stammered through his reply, "Well, actually it is pretty similar here, in Japan I mean and yeah. Similar to Japan."  
  
Meiling giggled at the embarrassed expression on Syaoran's face and commented, "I can see Syaoran is blushing now!"  
  
"Meiling." Syaoran warned.  
  
"Queen Li, may I know how are we going to Japan?" Sakura asked.  
  
"By our personal airplane; it is faster this way."  
  
Sakura's expression turned into awe when she heard that and she muttered softly, "My castle do not have one."  
  
"Pardon me?" Yelan said.  
  
"I was saying that your castle is equipped with the latest machines! It is really awesome!"  
  
"Can we set off now? I really missed my homeland," Meiling urged, bringing out a peal of laughter from Yelan.  
  
"You are so loyal!" Queen Li commented and Meiling blushed from the compliment.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Hikaru and Sakura settled themselves uneasily to Li's plane and were not accustomed to the feeling; this was, afterall, the first time they were taking an aeroplane. Syaoran tried to assure Sakura that it was safe in there and hat was when Sakura had, reluctantly, entered the plane with Hikaru's help.  
  
"Is this really safe," Sakura asked for the fifth time.  
  
Syaoran sighed and rolled his eyes heavenward, "Yes, this is perfectly safe."  
  
"But-"  
  
"I promise you nothing will happen. Do you like parties, Sakura?" Syaoran asked, changing the subject.  
  
Sakura looked down sadly, "I do not know about that; I have never been to one before."  
  
"Then you will like it! I assure you. Parties are fantastic," Meiling chirped in, refusing to be ignored.  
  
Syaoran suddenly smiled and then turned to address Sakura, who was having a pleasant chat with Meiling, "Do you realize that we are actually in the air now?"  
  
"HOOOOOOOEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!" Sakura exclaimed and clung to the seat for dear life, squeezing her eyes tightly shut.  
  
"Syaoran! You shouldn't have reminded her!" Meiling chided, looking at the terrified Sakura.  
  
Syaoran raised a brow at her and commented, "At least she is better, look at the physician. He has already fainted."  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
END OF CHAPTER 2  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
I do not know if there is any airplane in the 1800s; my History is real bad. Just pretend there were, only for the rich. How about cars? I know about carriages and such. How is the ending of this chapter? I love it but I think it is not funny enough when our Sakura is frightened to her death by the airplane. What do you think?  
  
------------------------------------------------ 


	4. Chapter 3

I am so sorry that I have not updated for that long. I am so busy nowadays and I really hope this chapter turns out good for you.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
DESTINY  
  
CHAPTER 3  
  
BY SAKURA AKA MICHELLE  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Little Sakura shriek and ran away from her captor, who was trailing closely behind. Laughingly, she shouted back, "I give up!"  
  
Syaoran slowed down and caught Sakura in no time for she had already stopped running. "Caught ya!"  
  
Sakura pouted and made a face, "I let you win!"  
  
He grinned back and pulled Sakura to the living room, where the rest of his family were having tea. The moment the two of them entered the room, everyone turned silent and just stared at Sakura, who shrunk back behind Syaoran in response, clinging onto his hand.  
  
"So she will be staying here until the age of eighteen?" Futtie, Syaoran's eldest sister asked.  
  
Yelan signed, "Yes. Is there any other questions, girls?"  
  
"May I ask one last question?" Fanren asked shyly and waited for her mother's answer.  
  
"Sure," Yelan replied, granting her youngest daughter permission to speak freely.  
  
"Will she be married to Syaoran?"  
  
"What?" Syaoran demanded upon knowing that he was being discussed.  
  
Yelan waved Syaoran away, "Meiling has already been promised to him. Besides, we need to keep out bloodline pure so that our future generations would be more powerful."  
  
"That's true," Both Feimei and Shiefa agreed.  
  
Not wanting to be ignored, Syaoran went straight in front of his mother, pulling Sakura along with him. "Good day, Mother."  
  
"My greetings to you, Queen Li." Sakura said uncertainly, wondering if she had said it correctly.  
  
All could do nothing but to gape at Sakura's manners. Yelan beamed at her and exclaimed, "What a darling girl you are! It is a waste that you are not a princess."  
  
At the mere mention of the word princess, Sakura turned pale drastically but all was forgotten when Syaoran said, "Would you like to have a pudding?"  
  
Sakura leapt into the air with joy and practically jumped up and down. Syaoran sweatdropped while the Queen laughed heartily, "Oh. what joy she had brought to us!"  
  
Sakura sat down on the couch quietly by the Queen's side, munching happily on the pudding Syaoran had given her. Everyone was contented with watching Sakura's every movements and mentioning that she was a cheerful girl. She did not know what all of them were talking about but just smiled whenever she heard her own name.  
  
"Can I have one more pudding please?" Sakura asked when she had finished her first one.  
  
"Wei," Yelan called out to her servant.  
  
"Yes, your highness?" Wei came forward hurriedly and asked.  
  
"Please bring more pudding for this young girl."  
  
"Certainly," Wei answered and then turned to Sakura. "May I have the empty cup?"  
  
Sakura looked up at him and smiled, confused. It was when Wei repeated is question that she realized that he meant that he would like to have the cup from her. She shook her head and slid off the high couch and told Wei, "May I follow you to get the pudding?"  
  
"Well. certainly, if the Queen permits it."  
  
Sakura looked at Yelan and asked, "May I?"  
  
The moment Yelan nodded her head, Sakura ran off ahead of Wei, who had to speed up to catch up with her. Yelan laughed at the scene.  
  
"Are you giving Sakura away, Mother?" Syaoran suddenly asked, catching Yelan by surprise.  
  
"Why would I do that son?"  
  
"But you said."  
  
Yelan smiled and patted Syaoran's head, "Sakura has to get married when she reach eighteen. Naturally, she will leave the castle for she does not belong here."  
  
"Then why did you bring her here?" Syaoran argued.  
  
"She is an orphan, Syaoran. She needs someone to take good care of her until she can take care of herself."  
  
"Oh." Syaoran drawled out, though he did not understand his mother. "May I take my leave, Mother?"  
  
"Sure," Syaoran permitted. "Go ahead son."  
  
When Sakura returned with a cup of pudding in each of her hands and a bright smile on her face, she was disappointed that Syaoran had already left. She looked at the extra pudding in her hand and bashfully offered it to Yelan, who accepted her offer.  
  
"Thank you Sakura. You are a generous young girl."  
  
Again, Sakura smiled. She wiggled her way up the couch and ate her pudding peacefully and exclaimed that it was delicious.  
  
Little did she know that her family treasure was in danger.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
How was that? Hee. I sure hope that next chapter will be more exciting. Reviews please! 


	5. Chapter 4

Gomen! It has been a long time since I updated this fic! I am **not **thinking of discontinuing this fic, if that is what you have thought. Ahem, anyway, here goes:

-------------------------------------------------

Destiny

Chapter 4

By Sakura aka Michelle

-------------------------------------------------

_Ten years later _ (Sakura and Syaoran were 16) 

It was only six in the morning; Sakura had awakened much earlier than usual. She yawned, stretched herself and sat on the edge of the bed, staring out of her window while she began her threads of thoughts. She had grown used to it; waking before the sun rose up in the clear blue sky and thinking until it was time for breakfast. _Everything has changed since the fire incident. Even I am not myself again…_Sakura thought sadly and began wishing that her parents and elder brother would be safe and that they would be here to collect her. _But.. do I really want to go back?_

            Sakura sigh and dressed herself, not bothering to ring for her personal maid for fear that she might interrupt her sleep. It has been ten years since Sakura was accepted as one the Li in the castle and she was really grateful for all the things the Queen had done for her, even if it meant that she would leave the castle someday. Suddenly, the idea of leaving this castle for good stuck a cord in Sakura's heart and it took all she had not to cry out. _I don't want to leave!_

            Slipping onto her slippers, Sakura crept out of her room and into the forbidden Li garden that even the Li princesses were not permitted. It belonged to Prince Li Syaoran and he had kindly granted her the permission to go in and out of the garden anytime. This was not known to anyone else as Sakura had always visited the garden before any of the maids of the royalties woke up. 

            "Syaoran?" Sakura asked softly after closing the door to the garden. [AN: The door is not a see through one. It is made of wood.. or some other opaque materials..] "Are you here?" She asked again and started wandering around in search of the prince.

            Soft footsteps could be heard behind her and Sakura threw herself into the person's arms instinctively since she already knew who the person was; the only person who dared to enter this garden was she herself and Syaoran. "Hey," Syaoran shouted out laughingly. "What brings you here earlier that usual?" 

            Sakura looked up from his chest and gave him her brightest smile ever. Syaoran could feel himself melting just looking at the way her smile lit up the whole garden and he found himself lost in the black orbs of her eyes. (AN: remember, she was wearing the lenses?) "Nani?"

            Syaoran went silent for a moment, deep in thought and then smiled at her sheepishly, "What did I ask you, anyway?"

            "Mou, Syaoran," Sakura chided. "You are forgetful! Didn't you ask me why I am earlier that usual?"

            Chuckling, Syaoran pinched her nose playfully and protested, "You beauty took my breath and my thoughts away. I can see that I am embarrassing you. Why... you are actually blushing red like a tomato!"

            Sakura pouted and Syaoran laughed in response, "Aren't you going to start your training? I love it when you play around with your sword!"

            "Play?" Syaoran repeated with an eyebrow arched as he disengaged from Sakura to prepare for his training. "This is hardly playing, Sakura. This is dangerous and you might hurt yourself if you are not careful."

            Sakura nodded absently to his explanations and then she asked innocently, "May I try it?"

            Syaoran whirled around in surprise and then gaped at Sakura, "What did you just say?"

            "I want to be strong too!" Sakura insisted. "You must teach me martial arts, Syaoran!"

            He was silent for long moments and he did steal some glances at Sakura in between intervals, as if he was judging her. She was getting nervous at the silence in the garden, even the animals sensed the tension and remained silent too. "Are you sure?"

            Sakura was beginning to have her doubts, "Y-yes."

            "Truly sure?" Syaoran asked again.

            She nodded her head, "Yes!"

            "I guess I have no choice then. Once you have made up your mind, I doubt anyone will be able to sway you. I can't outsmart your stubbornness," Syaoran relented with a sigh.

            Frowning, Sakura asked, "Is that a compliment or an insult?"

            "You won't do in that gown," Syaoran told her, disrupting her train of thoughts. "You'll need to wear just a simple pants and a shirt."

            "The clothing I have are only gowns. Your mother refuses to let me have men's' clothing," Sakura said with disappointment clearly in her voice as she looked down on the ground, shifting her weight from one leg to another. "That means I can't practice martial arts..."

            "Sakura," Syaoran interrupted with a devilish grin on his face. "You can always wear mine **but **on one condition."

            "What is it? What is it?" Sakura asked eagerly like a young child who was about to receive her present. "Tell me!"

            Syaoran pointed to his lips with a smile and Sakura blushed immensely, knowing what he had meant. "I would like to have a small reward for lending you my clothing. Worth it?"

            "After the practice," Sakura insisted, accepting Syaoran's training wear, the blush still on her face.

            Syaoran waited while Sakura went behind a cluster of trees, which was not in Syaoran's view, to change into the clothes he had handed over to her. To her surprise, she found that Syaoran's scent clung to her body. _It must be his clothings. Oh my... he has worn these before and I am wearing it now! I must stop blushing! Stop blushing!_ Sakura collected her clothing and ran back to Syaoran, who was lying on the grass with his arms propped behind his head. She was amazed that she could run swiftly without tripping, even though the pants reached beyond her ankles. He chuckled at the way Sakura looked like in an oversized shirt and pants and he earned a frown from Sakura.

            "Gomen, gomen," Syaoran apologized. "You look so kawaii in my clothes."

            "Now that you are done with laughing, can we get on with the practice?" Sakura inquired, trying very hard not to smile. _I really look funny! If only I have my own training wear..._

            And so, the training commenced with Syaoran as the teacher while Sakura his student. He was patient with her, knowing that she was not exposed to these kind of things. He had made sure that she got all the postures right and sometimes, he even had to adjust her posture so that she would not lose her footing. A grin plastered to his face when he noticed the blush on her face every now and then. Sakura tried very hard to concentrate on what he was telling her and found some difficulty remembering the moves. "Take your time, Sakura," Syaoran assured. "Remember that you are new at this."

            "Hai, Syaoran-sensei!"

-------------------------------------------------

End of chapter 4

-------------------------------------------------

Ah... so Sakura wishes to learn how to protect herself by learning martial arts, or was she wanting to be nearer to Syaoran? What about Syaoran's reward? Will he get it too? What will happen if the whole castle know about the sparks between the two of them? Will the queen approve of it? The answers are in the next chapter. Stay tune~

Sakura aka Michelle


	6. Chapter 5

**22 March, 2004** Destiny 

**Chapter 5**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

            Syaoran leaned against a tree trunk with his arms folded in front of his chest as he continued to watch Sakura practicing with his sword, with him giving some instructions every now and then. He was amazed by the strength that Sakura showed during the sword practice for he knew that Meiling would rather die than use his sword; his sword was just too heavy for a lady to lift up. He had considered Meiling a strong lady and he was rather surprised that Sakura held his sword as if it did not weigh more than a feather. 

            "Do you want to take a break, Sakura?" Syaoran suddenly asked. "You have been practicing for three hours already…"

            Sakura paused suddenly and ran towards Syaoran, flinging herself into his arms knowing that he would catch her, which he did although he did look surprised by her actions. He was about to ask her if anything was wrong when she hugged him and beamed up at him with all the adoration that was stored in her heart. Syaoran was so startled by the intensity he found in her eyes that he was rendered speechless.

            "Can I continue practicing tomorrow?" Sakura asked eagerly. "Can I? Can I?"

            Syaoran returned the hug and settled his hands on her waist. He grinned down at her and answered, "Of course, anything for my Sakura."

            Sakura giggled in response and slapped Syaoran's arm playfully, "I am not _your_ Sakura and do let go of me now."

            "No," Syaoran answered straightaway without putting much thought and to emphasize his point, he pulled Sakura tighter into his embrace and enjoyed the blush that spread like wildfire on her cheeks. "Sakura, I'm going to claim my reward now..."

            Sakura's flush deepened as she tried to pull herself away from Syaoran but he refused to give in to her demands. She then protested, "It is unseemly! Other people can see us..."

            Syaoran leaned his face closer to Sakura's and she averted her gaze immediately. His voice sounded husky to him when he answered her, "There's no one here, Sakura... No one dares to venture into my most private area of the mansion, except you. Look at me Sakura."

            She did as asked and found herself lost in his amber orbs. All was forgotten but the feel of Syaoran's body pressed against her and his wonderful scent... She trembled slightly when he said her name again and she leaned her cheek against his chest in acknowledgement that she had heard him. He would not have it and he used his hand to cup her chin while he leaned down purposefully, looking into her eyes. Sakura knew what Syaoran was up to; he had told her earlier that he was claiming his reward and she did not stop him. Instead, she leaned up closer to him and her eyes fluttered close...

            And the bell that signaled the start of the family's breakfast rang and interrupted their precious silence. (A/n: ^_^)

            Sakura's eyes widened with a start before she jerked away from Syaoran, turning her back to him lest he noticed the blush that was tinted on her cheeks. Syaoran cursed softly, _Damn the bell! I must abolish the bell system! Arghh... _

            "We shouldn't try that again; it seems inappropriate to me... I mean... you are a prince while I... I am nobody," Sakura soft voice echoed through his ears. 

            "We have been through this many times, Sakura," he said in exasperation. "In my eyes, you are a princess and wait, you aren't going anywhere yet," he added when Sakura started walking away from him. 

            "Your family won't approve of us being together!" Sakura wailed in his face, her eyes watering with fresh unshed tears. "I can't continue this... I can't and I won't continue."

            "What do you mean by that?" Syaoran demanded and shook Sakura by her shoulders. "You can't mean that!"

            Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat and hugged Syaoran with all her might. "I'll stay, Syaoran. I will stay with you until you are married. I know Queen Li wanted to keep the Li's bloodline pure so... it would be quite impossible for us to marry," she told him with a sad smile. "Let's just enjoy the days together until then."

            "No," Syaoran replied, nuzzling against her throat and making her squirm. "Two years isn't enough for me Sakura. I can choose not to marry whoever that was appointed to marry me. I won't marry them if you don't want me to."

            "Can we drop the subject?" Sakura pleaded. "And we are late for breakfast if you didn't notice..."

            Syaoran paled almost instantaneously. _If they knew that Sakura was with me, suspicion will arise... She might get punished! Damn the rules!_ "You need to change out of my training outfit," Syaoran reminded and then added when he checked his wristwatch. "And hurry while you are at it or we will both be dead."

            Sakura frowned at his choice of words but shrugged it off anyway. "I guess it would be better if you go first," she suggested and leaned up to press a kiss on Syaoran's cheek. "I'll be there in a while."

            "Be quick about it," Syaoran told her and gave a quick kiss on the forehead as they neared the exit and grinned when he saw Sakura blushing. 

            Li Meiling watched the exchange between the two from the corner of the corridor with a smile. _Things are getting more interesting around here... _She quickly withdrew from her hiding place when she noticed that Sakura was walking in her direction. She immediately relaxed when she realized that Syaoran was not following Sakura and that meant that Meiling was safe for now. 

Meiling glared at the two guards that she employed into motion, now that Sakura was alone and there was nothing that she could do to fight back two grown men at the same time. Meiling watched with glee as her two guards crept silently behind Sakura, their movements so delicate and executed so swiftly that she was sure that Sakura would be caught off-guard. 

            And she was wrong!

            Sakura sensed that she was being trailed by someone from the moment she stepped into the corridor and she had an idea who was behind this. _Princess Meiling... Why does she like to do this every time?_ She sighed and hurriedly duck when she realized that the two persons meant to whack her head and make her loose consciousness. Luck was with her for she barely made it in time before the hit. Dropping to her hands and knees, Sakura kicked out at them swinging her leg into a powerful arc that meant to trip them to delay some time for herself to make her escape. She swallowed her laughter when she saw her attackers' state; they were sprawled on top of each other, each trying to entangle themselves without much success.

            Deciding that she had had enough, Sakura swiftly made her escape but her only escape route was blocked by yet another burly and hideous looking war-toughened guard, obviously hired by Meiling.

            "What do you want from me?" Sakura demanded angrily, irked by the constant confrontation with the Li princess. "I have done nothing to disturb your peace!" 

            "I am just following orders," he replied in monotone. "If you would just come with us, we can assure you that no harm will come to you."

            "Why should I believe you?" Sakura taunted, her eyes blazing with anger. "I don't even know where you are bringing me!"

            There was no need for answer and it happened so quickly; in a blink of a second Sakura dropped into a heap on the ground, blacking out. "Are you sure you didn't hit anything vital?" the war-toughened guard asked worriedly. 

            "No, of course not!" The other two guards shouted in unison. "Princess Li will chop our heads off!"

            Throwing Sakura over his shoulder as if she was a sack of grain, the trio left to perform their required tasks...

-----------------------------------------

**Isn't this interesting? What are the guards going to do to Sakura? Nothing that will go above the rating stated for this story so don't worry. Haha... Any ideas anyone? Please leave your email in your review if you want to be notified when I upload the next chapter of this story. =] Thanks!**

**Sakura aka Michelle**

**sakuraakamichelle@yahoo.com.sg **


	7. Chapter 6

_**August 6, 2004**_

The long awaited chapter has arrived, sorry for the delay but I am really busy with school -work. Anyway, do continue to read this fanfic as well as other fanfics that I have written and vote for the next fanfic you want me to update first.

**Destiny**

**Chapter 6**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

Sakura felt utterly alone.

She had never felt so since the last time when the rebels invaded her castle and she had to fled her kingdom alone, with no familiar people around her to guide or direct her where to go. She felt the helplessness she encountered then and she thought that without the rebels in this kingdom, she would not be feeling it again. But she was wrong; now, she felt the same helplessness again.

It was dark and there was no sufficient light for her to see the surroundings around her or even to see herself. The air around her was stuffy and smelled of dust. The smell was so horrible that Sakura wished that she would just die on the spot and be in peace but no, she could not even do that herself. The back of her head when the guards hit her hurt whenever she made a move so she had to stay perfectly still while trying to tug her hands free from her back.

_If only the guards were dumb enough to leave my hands alone. I couldn't do anything with them bound behind my back of all places..._ Sakura thought and tried in vain to untie the ropes bounding her hands together. She knew her wrists were bruised from all her efforts in trying to get her hands free as it was hurting her. Though the pain was bearable itself but added with the dull ache on her head, she had difficult concentrating on the important things at hand.

_At least they did not blindfold me or gag me... _Sakura thought, trying to reassure herself with her own words but had little effect.

The door creaked open slowly and Sakura went limp immediately for she was sure the person was either one of the guards to check on her or Meiling, who would wish to gloat over her victory in getting her away from Syaoran without him knowing it. The footsteps came closer to her and she involuntarily stopped her breathing and breaking out in cold sweat.

"Looks like she hasn't woke up yet, Princess Meiling." Sakura recognized the voice; it belonged to one of the guards who tried to kidnap her and had succeeded in doing so.

"I was wishing that she would wake up sooner, I can't wait to tell her how happy Syaoran is to have her gone from his side. She is such a nuisance that no one likes. Why... She is not even one of the royal members, how can she mingle with the higher class? We only took her in because we _pity_ her," Meiling went on and on about telling the guard why Sakura should not be in the castle.

Sakura could not believe what she had heard from Meiling while pretending to lose consciousness. However, even though Meiling continued chattering, Sakura still had her doubts. _Syaoran would never have felt that way about me. He is always so kind towards me. I have never felt a single thread of pity from him... Princess Meiling must be lying!_

"Princess Meiling, what do you suggest we do to her?"

Meiling snorted, "Let her sleep if she want to sleep. Just keep her here and do not ever let her out of this room. Wish her a happy time spending her days here until she breathe out the last time."

"You mean to keep her in here all her life, Princess?"

"Why not?" She retorted almost immediately. "She dared to snatch my precious Prince Syaoran away from me. Why can't I do the same to her by snatching her freedom away?"

The guard nodded, "You are wise, Princess Meiling. I shall do according to your commands."

"Yeah, yeah, be sure to lock the door after you. Feed her only water and no food for her for a whole month. I can't stand being here; no one uses this hearing room for ages and it's getting a little too dusty," She complained.

"Should I get someone to clean up the mess in the room?" the guard offered.

Meiling snickered, "No, of course not. Let the commoner who dares to mingle with the higher class suffer in the darkness and filth. Lock the door after me and let no one in."

"Yes, Princess."

----------------------------------------------------

Syaoran knew that something was amiss when Sakura did not turn up for breakfast, even though she left the garden earlier than he did. He knew that she was the one person who would not miss any single meal with the family and enjoy the simple conversation with his family, especially his mother. His mother and Sakura got along quite well together and it indeed a rare occurrence that the queen smiled and not many people had the fortune to see that. He was one of them but that was not the case for Sakura.

_Where can she be at this time? It is already three hours past breakfast and still there is no sign of her anywhere... I hope that nothing is wrong..._ Syaoran thought and the more he thought, the more worried he got.

Suddenly, a name flashed across his mind whenever something was wrong with Sakura, "Meiling!"

-----------------------------------------------------

"Why do you always come to me to ask me questions whenever your precious Sakura went missing?" Meiling ranted when Syaoran asked her for Sakura's whereabouts. "It's not as if I ate her up or something. Quit coming to me to look for her. If you want to look for her, then do it yourself. I have lots of things to do, please excuse me."

Syaoran watched as Meiling stomped away angrily and then launched into thinking, "If Meiling's not involved in this, where can Sakura be?"

Just then, a guard came rushing forward, "Your highness, Queen Li wishes to see you in the second hearing room immediately. It is of utmost importance."

He frowned and the guard gulped, "Did she say anything about the meeting?"

"No, your highness. I was only to inform you about the meeting, sir."

"You may take your leave," Syaoran told the guard as he walked briskly to the hearing room that his mother wished to see him.

-----------------------------------------------------

**_A week later_**

The dull thud of her head had eased days ago and she was glad about that even though she had no idea if it was already morning or night. However, her dry throat craved for some water and she could hear her stomach rumbling every now and then. _Why hasn't the guard bring water today?_ The door creaked open and closed softly and to Sakura's relief, the guard was here with water for her and the glow candlestick illuminated the room, just enough for her to make out his form.

"I was delayed by the kitchen tenders. I've got you some food also."

Sakura pushed herself up into a sitting position with more ease since the guard had bounded her hands in front instead of at the back but she had to promise him that she would not do anything funny. "Thank you! You came just in time!"

"Eat it before it turns cold," the guard urged with a smile. "I wonder why Princess Meiling wish to have you captive here; you did nothing wrong."

"I did do something wrong to provoke her but I just can't help myself with that," Sakura replied solemnly.

Curious, the guard asked, "What did you do?"

Putting down the food and water, Sakura hugged her knees and replied, tears almost blinding her eyes; "I fell in love with Prince Syaoran…"

_To be continued..._

-----------------------------------------------------

**How's this chapter? This was done in 1 ½ hours time… I edited and re-edited a lot of times. =] Reviews are most appreciated and do vote for the next chapter update. =] Thanks!**

****

**Sakura aka **


	8. Chapter 7

**_8 February 2005_**

**Destiny  
Chapter 7  
By Sakura aka Michelle **

* * *

"It has already been a week," Syaoran said gravely. "Where could she be? Are you sure you did not send her to do some errand out of the castle, mother?"

Yelan sighed, "I am as worried as you are son and stop the pacing; it's making me dizzy. For the hundredth times, I did not send Sakura out of the castle to do something for me. You knew I would never let her out of the castle walls, don't you?"

Syaoran stopped suddenly and sighed loudly, "It has to be something to do with Meiling. I wonder why she has a grudge with Sakura; she has done nothing wrong to deserve all that treatments."

"She must be regretting saving her," Yelan remarked and eyed Syaoran. "It only takes a few seconds to observe the way both Meiling and Sakura look at you and we will know the reason why. I have been observing you and Sakura for quite some time without you knowing."

Syaoran looked quite shocked at his mother's announcements and was at a loss for words. "But there is nothing wrong with it, isn't it? Surely Meiling knows that love cannot be forced? I have been telling her all these since many years ago! How can she not know that? Isn't it obvious that I love Sakura?" Then he froze. _What did I just say? I did not blurt out my feelings for Sakura did I? Oh no..._

Smiling, Yelan leaned back against the back of her chair but her smile was immediately replaced by a frown. "It is really a rare thing for you to express your feelings, Syaoran. However, I have to tell you something important, which I have just remembered a few hours ago. This concerns your future, son."

Sensing the seriousness in his mother's tone rather than her words, Syaoran felt himself tensing slightly while awaiting for Yelan to continue. When she did not, he prompted, "What is it you wish to tell me, mother?"

"I wish to inform you that you cannot choose neither Meiling nor Sakura as your wife. In another words, you were betrothed at birth to the currently missing Princess of the Kinomoto kingdom," she replied, looking at Syaoran for his response.

His expressionless expression remained on his face for a few minutes while he digested the newly feed information into his mind, after which a pained expression flicker across his face and vanish totally. Even though it was for just a short period of time, Yelan noticed his change of expression totally. It was saddening to see her son in this state.

"I am sorry Syaoran," Yelan apologized sadly. "I should have told you when you were younger so that you will not involve yourself into such complicated relationships. This happens because the Kinomoto kingdom and the Li kingdom are at very good terms and Queen Nadeshiko is a personal friend of mine..."

"I... I…I really don't know what to say..." Syaoran said, without a trace of emotion in his voice but his lost of thoughts was apparent. "Is there any ways to break this betrothal? I really wish to be with Sakura, and only Sakura."

"I am afraid that is not possible until they find their missing princess," Yelan replied sadly. "They have news that she's still alive, somewhere in the world."

"You are saying that once the princess is found, we then can have a chance to withdraw the betrothal? Is that true, mother? Please don't give me false hope..."

Yelan shrugged and replied honestly, "That might be a possibility. I am not really sure about that issue."

"But anyway mother," Syaoran started to say and brightened up immediately as a thought strike him. "I have my suspicions... The missing princess might actually be-"

* * *

Sakura actually succeeded in getting the guard to untie the ropes binding so that she can have the freedom of movement in the dark room. However, the guard told her that she had to tie it back when Meiling came for any surprise visits or the both of them would suffer. Naturally, Sakura would have to agree; what other choices did she have?

"Don't you have the urge to get out of this place?" The guard asked. "I mean, have you ever thought of it?"

Sakura smiled and sat down on the dirt-covered ground since there are no chairs in the room. "It is impossible not to think of it... But what can I do about it now?" she laughed softly and tears welled up in her eyes.

"Actually," the guard coughed. "There is a way..."

"How?" Sakura sniffed. "You are not thinking of helping me are you? I object! What if I land you into trouble?"

The guard shook his head, "Not at all! Not when I try to drop some hint to Li-sama..."

"But…" Sakura protested.

"No buts," The guard interrupted.

* * *

**Hey, I apologize for the short chapter… This fic might be coming to an end soon. If you want the fic to be longer, remember to review!**


	9. Chapter 8

**14 February 2006**

**Destiny  
****Chapter 8  
****By Sakura aka Michelle**

* * *

Syaoran sat alone on a bench in the forbidden Li garden as he stared into the clear blue sky, watching the white clouds float graciously across the sky. All these days without Sakura with him had made him restless and a little lethargic. _Things are so different and boring without her around… _he thought with a loud sigh. 

Hearing the bell that signaled the start of their breakfast, Syaoran took his time standing up and stretching himself. He stifled a yawn and sighed again. Just when he stepped out of the garden through the door, he saw a suspicious looking guard who was looking around him as if he was trying to steal something. It took him a few moments to recognize the guard.

"You are the guard working for Meiling?" Syaoran asked aloud, his strong voice suddenly echoing through the hallway. He frowned at the guard's action. "What are you doing here? This place is only for…"

"I apologize for my presence in such a sacred place," the guard stammered as he looked around him once again. "I have something important that I wish to inform you, Li-sama. It concerns Princess Meiling and the commoner Sakura… Princess Meiling has held her captive in the old hearing room that hasn't been used for years. I was hoping that you might drop by that hearing room accidentally sometime later. I'm afraid that she might not hold on any longer…"

"What do you mean she cannot hold on any longer?" Syaoran demanded anxiously, his concern for Sakura shown clearly through each word he spoke.

The guard hushed Syaoran when he raised his volume but unfortunately he was heard. He guard cringed when Meiling's sharp voice pierced his ears, "May I know what are you doing in this part of the castle, Tanaka? You are supposed to do the job that I have assigned to you."

Tanaka bowed low in front of Meiling as a sign of obedience and tried to explain himself, "I was taking a shortcut to the kitchen, Princess Meiling. I assure you that there is nothing else. I was stopped by Prince Li."

Meiling nodded and narrowed her eyes at Tanaka as if she was not convinced by his explanation. "Why are you still standing here? You are supposed to do your duty!"

"Yes, Princess Meiling," Tanaka bowed again. "I'll go right away."

Meiling watched Tanaka until he disappeared around the corner where he made a turn into a path, which would lead him into the kitchens, before turning to face Syaoran with a sweet smile. "It's time for breakfast," Meiling chirped and hooked her right arm over Syaoran's left arm. "Shall we set off now for breakfast? You just cannot imagine how hungry I am right now."

Syaoran pulled his arm away from Meiling's tight grasp, despite her protests and told her in a serious voice, "I have got something important that I need to do. Could you please tell my mother that I will not be present for today's breakfast? I am not hungry anyway."

"Where are you going?" Meiling asked hurriedly as he turned to walk away from her. "Why aren't you having breakfast with us? You always join in for breakfast everyday without fail. This is the first time you are doing this, Syaoran."

"I make my own decisions and no one shall ever make me change my decisions once it is made. No one," Syaoran emphasized on the last two words. "Make sure you tell my mother."

Syaoran turned around and walked away after that and that was why he missed the expression of hatred on Meiling's face. _He must be trying to look for that Sakura… But he will not be able to find her so easily…_ She hissed out loudly for no one in particular and walked to the dining room, where they would have their breakfast together.

Sakura leaned her arms on her bent knees and tried to ease her own boredom by blowing the dust away from the floor under the watchful eyes of the other guard who seemed to be serving Meiling faithfully. She frowned at him when she caught him looking at her and she stuck out a tongue at him in order to make him angry or irritate him.

"Untie my arms, Takase-san," Sakura said and raised her bounded hands up to him in a silent command. She pouted when he curtly refused. "It's not as if I'll bite you once my hands are free…"

Takase crossed his thick hairy arms and replied sternly, "It's Princess Meiling's order to keep you bound and gagged in this room. Just be glad that you are not gagged yet but I will gag you if you continue to spout nonsense."

"Who would want to bite you anyway? So disgusting," Sakura commented and pretended to vomit on the spot, making some noisy gagging sounds for him to hear. Takase rolled his eyes in response but made no other movements. Sakura frowned at his lack of response and tried to think of another way to annoy him. "Takase-san, I want to go to the restroom."

"No," he simply answered without looking at her.

"Please?" Sakura asked again. "Pretty please? It won't take long."

"Since it won't take wrong, use the chamber pot over there," he said, pointing to the small pot in the dark corner of the room before turning around in order not to face her.

Sakura gasped aloud and stared at the chamber pot with wide eyes and when she recovered from her shock she shouted at the guard, "How dare you do this to me? I have done nothing to you and yet you dare to deprive me of my own privacy? Please tell me, of kind sir, what did I do to deserve this? Just what did I do? I really want to know what I did to deserve this treatment. Please enlighten me!"

Takase felt his temper snap as he advanced towards Sakura with a purpose and that was to shut her up. If threatening her was of no use, then he might have to use force. "You are merely trying my patience lady. This is what Princess Meiling ordered us to do; to never let you out of this door ever again. We will follow all her orders without asking her, neither should you."

Sakura rose to full height and refused to be intimidated by Takase. "I bet you'll jump off the castle if she asks you to," Sakura retorted and glared at him. "After all, you are Meiling's loyal servant."

"Last warning, Lady," Takase warned. "Don't make me do things that both you and I don't like."

"I really pity you, Takase-san," Sakura said with a pitiful sigh for him. "You don't even own your own life. Not only you have to do as Meiling had said, you also follow her every order. If I were you, I surely would not be able to stand it. I mean, I could not stand Meiling's numerous orders. How could anyway carry out so many different orders at the same time? I would collapse."

Takase suddenly raised a hand to slap Sakura while she was in the middle of her long speech. She was caught unaware and she screamed out loud in fright. She lost her balance and went hurtling to the floor, landing in an awkward position. She lay on the floor for a few moments, totally dazed, before she stared daggers at Takase who landed her in this undignified state. Takase did not even bother to look at her as he returned to his post by the door.

Sakura tried to push herself up into a sitting position and winced aloud when she tried to move her right leg. _Must have sprained it just now… Stupid Takase… _"What's so great about Meiling anyway? Why would everyone want to serve her so eagerly?" Sakura asked aloud for no one in particular. "Must be her wealth that attracted people and that great pay that she has for her servants…"

She started scooting as far back as possible when she saw Takase approaching her with venom in his eyes. When she saw him raise his hand in preparation to hit her, she shut her eyes tightly to wait for the blow and could not help herself but to scream loudly in fright. She heard a loud crash and automatically assumed that Takase tripped on something and fell onto the ground. She risked herself to open one eye slowly to look at what has happened. Her heart gave a lurch when she saw Syaoran standing behind the fallen Takase, his chest heaving with exertion and panting from the run.

"Are you all right?" he asked worriedly as he jumped over Takase and ran towards her. "I heard you screaming."

Sakura could only nod her head as she was still reeling for the shock of seeing Syaoran in this secluded hearing room. She had heard Meiling telling the guards that this hearing room was not in used for many years. "I'm fine. I just want to get out of her as soon as possible. I cannot stand this room any longer."

Syaoran fumbled with the ropes that tied Sakura's hands together. "You have no idea how worried I was when you did not turn up for breakfast that morning. Seems that you have lost some weight," he said as he hoisted Sakura to her feet and frowned when she winced in pain. "Are you sure you are all right?"

Smiling sheepishly, she admitted, "I sprained my ankle from my fall just now but I still can manage so far."

"Tell me who did this to you," Syaoran demanded as he lifted Sakura into his arms, bridal style. "I'll bring hell into his life."

"Well," Sakura drawled. "It was Takase-san who landed me in this plight," she said, rubbing her sore cheek.

"No, I want the name of the mastermind."

Sakura was silent for long moments, torn between telling him and protecting the mastermind. Seeing her hesitation, Syaoran replied for her. "It's Meiling, isn't it?"

Sakura nodded her head slowly and hurriedly added, "She meant no harm. She only wanted me away from you so that you could be hers."

Syaoran shrugged as he carried Sakura out of the hearing room, "I roughly have an idea of what was going on in her mind. Even if you are not around, the two of us would not have a future together anyway."

If Sakura thought that his statement was strange, she did not ask. She was contented to be in Syaoran's arms even for a short moment. "I thought I would stay in that hearing room forever," she confessed with a contented sigh. "I am so glad to be out."

"Of course you are," Syaoran replied. "I'll bring you to see mother once I have bandaged your ankle. We'll go to my room."

"Your room?" Sakura almost shouted. "But this is inappropriate!"

Syaoran smiled, "I don't care."

That was how Meiling found the two of them at the corridor outside Syaoran's room. The two of them were still squabbling but they had a carefree expression. Meiling frowned when she saw Sakura. "How did you get out? Oh, I shouldn't have asked. Syaoran must be the one saving you."

Sakura was about to reply when Syaoran hushed her and replied instead, "Whether or not I did save her is none of your concern anymore. I do not have to report to you whatever things that I have done in your absence."

Meiling was infuriated when Syaoran walked into his room with Sakura in his arms and he purposely slammed the door into her face, thus making her even angrier. She stomped away at the delightful chuckles coming from inside his room.

* * *

**Finished But that's not the end of the story yet. I wonder what will happen next. laughs So... What do you want to happen next? Review please**


	10. Chapter 9

**Destiny **

**Chapter 9**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

* * *

Sakura sat on the edge of the bed, watching with amusement at Syaoran, who was pacing around in his room with a frown on his face and his arms folded in concentration. Sakura knew what was going on exactly in his mind but kept mum as she enjoyed the view of a worried Syaoran, who was trying to ask her a question but the words just would not come out from his mouth.

He suddenly stopped in his tracks to stare at Sakura, who just smiled sweetly in return, and then walked up to her, causing her to crane her neck to look up at him. The worry was clearly on his face when he looked at her and she was truly touched by his concern.

"Did…" he started but then blushed furiously as he ran his hands in his messy hair. He sighed and broke away the eye contact and started his pacing again, earning giggles from Sakura. He scowled and turned to glare at her. "What's so funny?"

Sakura stopped, turning sheepish out of a sudden, and looked down at the folded hands on her lap. "They didn't try to do anything that you are thinking," Sakura replied, hiding her smile and her blush.

Syaoran heaved a sigh of relief and realized that he had unconsciously held his breath when Sakura was talking. He was kneeling in front of her when she looked up and he asked again, "Are you sure? The guards didn't do anything to you at all?"

"I'm fine, Syaoran," Sakura replied with a smile as she reached out to touch Syaoran's cheek, noticing the signs of fatigue on his face. "You didn't sleep well," she stated as she caressed his cheek and stopped when his hand covered hers.

"How can I sleep knowing that you are missing and might be facing danger?" Syaoran said and crushed her into his embrace such that she was also kneeling on the floor with him. "Don't you ever leave me like that ever again, Sakura. I might not be able to take it the next time round; I might go crazy!"

Sakura returned his hug and leaned closer into his embrace and shyly nodded her head. Slightly comforted by her response, Syaoran lifted Sakura onto the bed again and stared at her, making her feel a little uncomfortable. Unable to meet his eyes, she asked softly, "Is there anything on my face? I know that I haven't had a bath for ages..."

Syaoran chuckled, "Even if you are covered with dirt, I'll still think that you are the most gorgeous lady that I have ever had to luck to lay my eyes on. I would even kiss and worship the very floor you step on."

"Sweet talker," Sakura retorted and a pink blush tainted her cheeks and she tried to hide it but failed miserably.

Pressing a quick kiss to her cheek, Syaoran straightened up and told her, "If you like, I will fetch some maids to bring a bath in for you. How about that?"

Not trusting her voice to answer his question, Sakura just nodded her head and refused to look at Syaoran. The latter just laughed and left the room to fulfill his new task.

Sakura was soaking in a tub of warm water filled with rose petals within half an hour's time. Leaning against the tub, she closed her eyes and let out a contented sigh. Her eyes had hurt a lot after having wearing the black lens for such a long time and it felt so good to take them off for a while while she bathed in peace, without any interruptions. She still felt bad for using Syaoran's room and barring his entry while she enjoyed her luxurious bath.

She rolled the black lens between her fingers and stared at them as she began to think of her family. She really wished that both her parents as well as her brother were back in the castle safely but there was no way that she could have known anything about the Kinomoto kingdom because she has no access to whatever communications within the Li kingdom. Syaoran would surely suspect something if she started asking about the Kinomoto castle.

Sakura sighed as she put the lens on the small cupboard by the side of the wooden bathtub. She hasn't been out of the Li kingdom ever since she stepped in. She has no chance to be out of the castle unless with the permission of Syaoran or the queen. If only any of her relatives drop by the Li Castle for a visit or something. At least she would be able to catch them secretly and let them know that she, the princess of Kinomoto kingdom, was doing well and ready to go back to the castle.

Leaning back against the tub again, she closed her eyes to rest and tried to push all the thoughts to the back of her mind for the moment.

* * *

Syaoran went to look for his mother to inform her that Sakura was found and that there was no need for her to be worried about her anymore. He found her in the throne room but she was not alone; there was a footman dressed in something that was not familiar to him or his kingdom. He immediately noticed the unusually brilliant smile on his mother's face as she read a letter in her hands.

Then, she looked up and noticed that Syaoran was in the throne room as well. He bowed low to his mother in greeting, which she returned with a gentle smile. Yelan ordered a maid to show the foreign footman to a guestroom where he would wait for her written reply, which was to be brought back to his kingdom without delay.

Now, mother and son were alone in the throne room.

"We have a good news with us," Yelan announced and she leaned forward to wait for Syaoran's response. The latter noticed something was coming up and nodded for her to continue her announcement. "The Kinomoto kingdom is back in order. King Kinomoto has finally be able to clear up the mess and also, his missing daughter has been found."

"Princess Kinomoto?" Syaoran asked, totally surprised. "They managed to find her?"

"Don't you want her to be found?" Yelan asked curiously and frowned at his lack of enthusiasm. "She is still engaged to you, if you have not forgotten. Now that Princess Kinomoto is back, we will pay a visit to her as quickly as possible and remind her of the engagement that Queen Kinomoto Nadeshiko has made with me."

"What?" Syaoran exclaimed. "So fast? Mother, I have just found Sakura and she needs some attention right now. If I were to go to Kinomoto castle, Sakura would be left alone and defenseless against Meiling's wrath!"

"Bring a girl along with us while we visit the Kinomotos is out of question," Yelan cut through Syaoran's tirade. "Be prepared to stay with the Kinomotos for quite some time to allow both you and your bride-to-be to get to know each other better. No more arguing; it has already been decided."

"Mother!"

"Meanwhile, you may wish to send Sakura over to Hiiragizawa castle. Tomoyo would be most willing to look after Sakura while you are gone. This way, we can be assured that she will be out of the harm's way and Meiling cannot lay a finger on her."

Having no other choice but to accept his mother's instructions, Syaoran decided to follow her orders first in order to placate her and then try to persuade the princess to break off the engagement with him. Hoping that this idea would work, Syaoran bowed before his mother and took his leave dejectedly.

* * *

Syaoran knocked on his door several times and received no response from the beautiful occupant in his room. He sighed and leaned against the wall of the corridor and waited for her to finish her bath.

_Why is she taking such a long time? _Syaoran thought as he waited outside his room, becoming more impatient as moments passed by. _Could it be that something has happened to her?_ Syaoran began to panic then. He rapped on the door so loudly that he thought he could wake the dead but still, there was no response from Sakura. Turning the doorknob and to his surprise, he found that the door was unlocked. Without hesitation, Syaoran dashed into the room and found Sakura in a steamy wooden tub with her eyes closed.

Thinking that something terrible might have befallen on her, Syaoran rushed to her side, momentarily forgotten that she was naked in the bathtub as he was too worried about her. "Sakura?" He asked worriedly. "Wake up, Sakura."

Sakura stirred, bringing up her hands to rub her sleepy eyes and murmured something that is inaudible to Syaoran then continued to sleep in the tub. Syaoran sighed, knowing that Sakura was only sleeping and not in any grave danger. He touched her cheek to get her to wake up. Sakura opened her eyes groggily at the contact. Through her blurry vision, she saw the shadow of a stranger in front of her and then she opened her mouth to let out a piercing scream.

"What?" Syaoran was at a loss of what to do. If Sakura would not stop screaming, the guards would be running over in a few seconds. Since his hands were occupied with keeping her flailing arms from attacking him, he only has one option left.

Keeping a firm hold of Sakura's arms, Syaoran leaned in and their lips met.

* * *

**How was that? Hope you like it and if you do, please leave me a review. Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Destiny **

**Chapter 10**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**August 6, 2007**

* * *

Sakura awoke with a start when the shaking got a little violent. She blinked at her bright surrounding, unable to focus clearly and her mind still cloudy. She raised a hand up to shield her eyes in an attempt to block out some of the light. That was when she saw a dark shadow right beside her. Her natural instinct was to push whoever he was away with all the strength that she could muster to put some distance between them so that she has some time to escape. She panicked instantly when the person grabbed her hands; she screamed for help as loud as she could and struggled in vain against the person's strong grip.

Her scream for help was silenced off halfway and she gasped in surprise when their lips met and she froze. The grip on her wrists went lax and her 'attacker' stepped backwards quickly, looking quite embarrassed himself and that was when Sakura realized that it was only Syaoran.

"Man, your scream could wake up the dead," he commented, still unable to make himself look at her in the eyes and then turned his back to her, suddenly remembering that she was still in the bath. "I thought something had happened to you so I came in without your permission. I'm sorry."

Sakura was at a loss of what to say, her heart was still thumping at a rapid pace and it seemed that it would not calm down that soon and a blush was plastered to her cheeks. Not knowing what to do, she looked down bashfully only to realized that she was still in the middle of her bath. She let out a soft squeak and slid further down into the waters in an effort to cover herself.

Just then, a loud knock sounded on the door and the two quickly turned to stare at it in horror before looking at each other. The knocking continued, though it was louder this time round and a feminine voice called out, "Syaoran, is everything all right? I thought that I heard a scream. Syaoran?"

"It's my mother!" Syaoran exclaimed softly to Sakura, who sat wide-eyed in her bathtub. "What should we do? We can't let her know that you're in here!"

"Syaoran? Are you all right? I'm getting worried out here," his mother called out again.

"I'm all right! I'm all right! I just dozed off in the middle of my bath," Syaoran called out in reply while trying to think of a best way to deal with this inconvenient situation. "I'll be ready in a while!"

Syaoran then grabbed a big towel from his cupboard by the side of the room and flung in over the wooden tub in such a way that it covered Sakura totally without revealing anything. He then whispered to her, "Do not make any noise. I'll try to make her go as fast as possible." He waited for her to nod in reply before leaving her in the tub to confront his worried mother. He donned on a bathrobe and poured some water from the water pitcher on the small cupboard next to his bed over his head before steadying himself to face his mother.

Yelan stood outside with a frown marring her forehead. "That is a very bad habit for a prince," she chided. "There is something that I wish to discuss with you in private," she told him and walked past her son into his room without any warning. Luckily the bathtub in which Sakura was currently in was shielded by an opaque screen in the right corner of the room, thus giving her some protection against being discovered easily.

Syaoran closed the door uneasily and turned to find his mother sitting calmly on his bed, while he was wishing that she would leave as soon as possible. "What it is you wish to talk to me about, mother?"

Yelan sighed, "It's about the our visit to the Kinomoto castle, of course. And yes, we will still be visiting them as planned so don't give me that hopeful look on your face. It's about the princess. It was rumored that she is quite a hot-tempered lady and a total change from what she used to be when she was young, before she escaped from the rebel attack. I thought that you ought to know about it since we are going to visit the castle."

"Totally different?" Syaoran asked curiously.

"Perhaps it is due to the harsh environment that she had lived before. I heard that she ill-treats every servant in the castle she could see. She was a docile child when she was young. I really wonder what may have caused this dramatic change in her behaviour."

"Is there any possibility that she might not be the princess after all?"

"Nonsense!" came the angry reply. "They have verified the identity of this Princess Kinomoto by the Clow book that she had carried with her when she came back to the castle. In case you do not know what a Clow book is, it is a piece of heirloom that is specially passed down to every first born female of Queen Kinomoto. In addition, the irises of every Kinomoto are emerald. There is no mistake that the current Princess Kinomoto is that one that they were looking all over the place for so many years."

"I was just thinking about it, that's all," Syaoran commented and earned himself another glare from his mother and he wisely kept his mouth shut.

Yelan stood up, preparing to leave, but paused when she remembered something else. "Another thing Syaoran, King Kinomoto is critically ill and Nadeshiko is pressing us to put forward the wedding for the both of you. It was said that he might not last more than a month…"

Syaoran stood up as well, his expression grave. "What happened to the King?"

"I'm not too sure about that," Yelan answered honestly. "I've asked the messenger about it and I was told that he had quite a bad fall from the long flight of stairs and has been bed-ridden and sickly since then. Nadeshiko is very worried about him as well."

"It must have been tough on her," Syaoran empathized. "When are we setting off?"

"I have asked for our things to be prepared. We should be able to leave in an hour's time. Meanwhile, you can make arrangements for Sakura to be brought to Hiiragizawa castle."

"Yes, mother," Syaoran replied and watched his mother exit from his room with grace. Only when the door clicked shut did he allow himself to relax and heaved a huge sigh of relief. Then he turned to face the screen and told Sakura, "She's gone now. I'll leave the room for you to dress up. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Sakura remained in the bathtub, too shaken by the news that Yelan had brought to get up. _How can they have found the princess when I am right here in Li Kingdom?_ She thought desperately._ How is that possible? Someone has really stolen my Clow book when I thought that I have misplaced it all these years! Someone must have taken over my place without anyone knowing and that person must have hurt otou-sama!! I must go back.. I must go back now! I must…But how? _Sakura thought desperately. Then she remembered the conversation between mother and son. _Syaoran is going to Kinomoto Kingdom! I can ask him to bring me along. He would not turn me down. I must let him know!_

With that in mind, Sakura got up quickly and began dressing up only to realize that the only clothing that she had with her was the one she had wore while she was with the guards. Disgusted at the thought of wearing it again, she threw it aside and went to rummage Syaoran's wardrobe for something decent to wear. She picked up a plain white long sleeve shirt that proved to be too long for her that she had to tuck much of them into the black trousers that she had chosen to wear, and had to roll the sleeves up to the elbows but still it kept slipping off. _I must look terrible in these… This is the second time I am wearing Syaoran's clothing… _Sakura thought and then started blushing all over again. She patted her cheeks in an effort to brush it off then squared herself before moving towards the door, wondering if Syaoran was waiting for her outside.

She opened the door and took a peek outside, just in case someone else was out there in the corridor, who might have spotted her if she were to jump out instead. The coast was clear and the only person out there was Syaoran, who was leaning arms-crossed against the wall, looking pensively into the space. He jerked away from the wall when he heard Sakura call him from inside the room. He flashed her a grin and walked into his room, watching her attempts to stop blushing and that was when he realized why; she was wearing his clothes, again.

"So now my room has become your room and my clothes become yours?" Syaoran teased and shut the door firmly, making sure it was locked. "I sure do hope that the owner of this room belongs to you."

Sakura blushed even further and squirmed uncomfortably in her oversized clothing. "I didn't mean to wear your clothes without permission," she protested immediately. "It's just that I don't want to wear those filthy clothes that was on me while I was held captive."

Syaoran nodded in understanding, but that grin was still on his face and that irked Sakura just a little. He thought that she still looked wonderful and lovely in that shirt and trousers of his. However, he thought that she looked somewhat different, though he could not tell at the moment. Moving closer to her, Syaoran grasped her arms and pulled her forward to him, intending to tell her about his departure and his intention of bring her to Hiiragizawa castle to keep Meiling away from her. She moved nearer to him willingly and looked up at him, opening her mouth to tell him something but he did not hear it, for he was too dumbstruck by what he saw.

This Sakura had emerald eyes.

* * *

**That's it for Destiny Chapter 10. I sincerely apologize for the long absence over here. I've been busy with my university exams and part-time job. It is really nice to receive encourgements from some of you over here. I'm really touched. I hope that I have not disappointed anyone. ) My one week university vacation is going to end in two days' time. How time flies... But fret not, I'll write whenever I can. Do visit my CCS website for more up -to-date news. )**


	12. Chapter 11

**Destiny **

**Chapter 11**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**August 16, 2007**

* * *

"Syaoran, I would like to go to the Kinomoto castle with you," Sakura started and twisted her fingers in front of her nervously while she waited for him to answer. When he did not, she looked up at him curiously and attempted to explain to him. "You see? I was born in that kingdom and have not returned since I came here. I missed my own home. Can you bring me with you? I promise I won't not be a nuisance to you. You can proceed to the castle while I… while I find my own home."

Syaoran said nothing but continued to stare at her until she became very uncomfortable that she actually felt guilty for having lied to him and as if he had already knew her secrets. She squirmed and tried to take a step backward in an effort to put some space between them in order to reduce the awkwardness that occurred between them. Before she could even draw her leg back to take a step, the grip on her arms tightened and she paused, looking up at him with uncertainty and not knowing what was going on in his mind.

"Sakura," Syaoran finally said after long moments but was at a loss for words after this. The silence stretched further and it was Syaoran who broke it again. "It was said that the royalties in Kinomoto Kingdom are very special."

Sakura gulped and nodded her head, unsure about where the direction of this conversation would be heading. "I have heard about that before too."

Syaoran shook his head slowly, but his eyes remained staring at the lady in front of him. "You did not hear about it, Sakura. For you yourself, is a very special person. I'm sure that you are still unaware about it right now, at this moment in time."

"What are you talking about, Syaoran?" Sakura interrupted, stopping him from saying more and looked away. "I don't understand what you are saying to me."

Syaoran sighed. _She is still trying to hide it from me, after all that I have done for her…_He used a finger to pushed Sakura's chin up, forcing her to look at him in the eye. Having no other choices, she naturally obeyed and waited for him to explain himself, hoping that it was not what she was actually thinking and hoping that it would not happen.

"You are a very careless lady, Sakura," Syaoran commented and had Sakura confused all over again. He chuckled, seeing her confused expression and then added, "I have heard that the royalties from the Kinomoto Kingdom have a unique emerald iris that no others have except for their own families and you here, has the exact iris colour as them. I believe that is what you have been trying to hide from us all these years that you are staying with us."

Sakura gasped aloud, thunderstruck by her carelessness and his astute observation, and her lips had formed an 'o' shape and her eyes had turned as huge as a saucer. Syaoran actually thought she looked cute this way. She put a hand over her right eye had silently berate herself for her own carelessness that led the cat out of the bag and her secrets revealed. She looked over to the small cupboard by the side of the wooden tub and saw her two black lenses still lying there. She wished that the floor would open up a big hole and swallow her or a big bird to fly in and carry her away so that she could escape from the inevitable confrontation.

"I… I'm sorry!" It was all Sakura could say in this situation that she had feared for many years and had tried her very best to avoid by taking precautions such as checking her eyes the first thing she woke up in the morning but yet, due to her slight carelessness, she screwed up everything. She felt so devastated that she started to weep.

Syaoran groaned when he saw her crying and quickly pulled her deep into his embrace and told her gently, "I'm not berating you for trying to hide your identity for I believed that you have a reason for doing so and I also understand the difficulties that you are in all these years. I am really glad that it was me who found out about it and not any other people who might blow up the matter and make it even worse." He patted her back awkwardly, having not used to comforting other people especially crying ones, and then continued his efforts to comfort her. "Don't worry about it, Sakura. Your secret is safe with me."

Syaoran's gentleness moved Sakura to the core and she wept even harder, pouring out all her pent-up emotions that she had kept deep inside of her all these years; the homesickness she felt each and everyday and the yearning for Syaoran's love even though she knew it was impossible for them to be together. She had felt bad for lying to everyone and she feared she might not be able to take on the guilt from now onwards. She feared rejection from the Li family once they found out their identity and she was afraid that Syaoran might push her away once her identity was revealed. However, it turned out that he did not despise her for her lie and had actually accepted her as she was. She felt as if a heavy load had been taken off her shoulders.

Sakura snuggled deeper into his embrace and she felt tired after the torrents of tears had subsided, along with all her bottled up emotions. 'After all these years of finding, you are actually right in front of us all along," Syaoran commented, chuckling. Sakura looked up at him with tear-brimmed eyes, unable to make sense out of what he had said. He shook his head and used his thumb to wipe away the droplets of tears that still clung to her eyelashes. "I still have to go to the Kinomoto castle, Sakura, and I can't bring you along with me. Who knows what will happen when I am there. However, I'll find out more about this imposter while I am there and I need you to stay at the Hiiragizawa castle under heavy protection."

"But I want to be there!" Sakura protested. "I have to see it with my own eyes who the imposter is!"

"You know it is impossible to do that," Syaoran said firmly. "You don't know what they will do if they know you are the real princess. I do not wish to put you in that kind of danger. I'll pretend I do not know anything that happens when I am there and find out as much information as I can. Then, we devise a plan together."

Seeing the reason behind Syaoran's plan, Sakura had no choice but to obey him. She did not know how it happened but half an hour later, she was all dressed up and sitting in the carriage alone and was driven to Hiiragizawa castle for Syaoran was heading off in the other direction and was unable to accompany her. However, he did pass her a letter meant for King Hiiragizawa to explain the reason for her presence. The guard at the entrance of the castle stopped their carriage and Sakura stepped out, handing the letter over to the footman to be brought to the King's attention immediately. The guard raised an eyebrow and looked at Sakura suspiciously. "It is from Prince Li Syaoran. It is an emergency," Sakura repeated what Syaoran had told her and it was effective for the guard practically flew into to castle to hand the letter over the King.

Sakura stood waiting at the entrance of the castle and stared at the beautiful surrounding in awe. _I wonder how Kinomoto castle looks like now_, Sakura thought fondly, remembering the beautiful scenery of her own home and the caring villagers who often played with her when she was young. A loud cough interrupted her train of thoughts and she turned and found that guard earlier standing rigidly at the entrance.

"The King will see you at the throne room," he announced devoid of any emotion. "Please follow me."

Sakura said her thanks to the carriage driver from the Li Kingdom and sent him back to where he was before following the guard to their destination. The whole entrance walkway was covered with purple banners that bore the crest of their Kingdom, which was a pair of ferocious lions. It looked very similar to that of the Li Kingdom's, which was a pair of wolves. However, the crest of the Kinomoto castle was that of a cherry blossom. Sakura wondered if the Li Kingdom and the Hiiragizawa Kingdom were related somehow.

The guard left her own her own once they reached the door that would led her to the throne room. When she did not move, the guard opened the door for her and explained, "The throne room is just ahead."

"Thank you very much, guard-san," Sakura said sincerely and smiled at him gratefully. The guard blushed and bowed deeply before rushing off to continue with his duties. Sakura walked into the throne room cautiously, blinking at the unfamiliar environment.

The King who was initially sitting on his thrown stood when he spotted her at the entrance and moved towards her with a long-haired lady beside him. Sakura stopped mid-pace and wondered what she was supposed to do. By the time she had made a decision, the pair had already stopped in front of her. The lady had gorgeous violet eyes that were staring intently at her and Sakura stared back, finding her familiar, as if she had met her before.

_Violet eyes… Dark hair… Could it be Tomo-chan?_ Sakura thought.

The lady in front of her beamed at her and that was when Sakura realized that she had spoken her thoughts aloud. "That's her! That's her!" The lady exclaimed excitedly to the King. "It's really her! She's the only one who calls me that!"

"Calm down, Tomoyo," The King told her. She stopped her excited chattering but a brilliant smile was on her face. "Nice to meet you, Princess," The King said to Sakura. "I'm Hiiragizawa Eriol. Please call me Eriol. And this is my wife, Hiiragizawa Tomoyo. She used to be called Daidouji Tomoyo."

"Sakura-chan!" Tomoyo rushed forward to hug her tightly. "It has been so long! I just knew that the Sakura in the castle is not you!"

Sakura smiled and hugged back, "It's also good to see you too, Tomo-chan. After all, it has been really a long time since I see any of my family members."

"Well, I guess you will be staying with us until Syaoran is back from his current mission," Eriol said. "We are in the process of preparing a room for your stay. We will bring you there later when it is done. Meanwhile, why not join us for dinner while we talk?"

"I would love that!" Sakura disengaged herself from Tomoyo to reply. Eriol smiled warmly at her enthusiasm and nodded to one of the lady servants to get their meal ready.

"Shall we, ladies?" Eriol asked, extending both his elbows to both Tomoyo and Sakura. Tomoyo went to him almost immediately while Sakura hesitated, looking at Tomoyo worriedly, afraid that it would be against the protocol to link her arm to a man who was already married. Seeing Tomoyo's nod of approval, Sakura shyly allowed herself to be led by the King.

* * *

**That's it for Chapter 11! Is this update fast enough? ) School has already started and I will be pretty busy soon so I'll have to update now whenever I can. Please continue to support me. Thanks for all the reviews and emails again! )**

**-Sakura aka Michelle**


	13. Chapter 12

**_May 5, 2008_**

**Destiny**

**Chapter 12**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**Disclaimer: CCS does not in any way belong to me.**

* * *

Sakura did not realize the extent of her longing to be with her relatives until she saw Tomoyo again, after so many years. She almost wept when she saw her but luckily, she managed to keep her emotions under control.

The trio was having dinner in the Hiiragizawa castle's grand dining room. Eriol was sitting at the head of the impossibly long table, with both ladies sitting at both sides of the table. Sakura looked across the table at her beloved cousin and was alarmed when she felt the sudden rise of tears forming in her eyes. She quickly blinked her eyes to keep them at bay, while she continued to munch on her dinner.

Tomoyo had turned into a great beauty and Sakura was glad to see that she was happily married with the King of Hiiragizawa castle. Even a dumb person could have seen that the two of them were very much in love with each other. _I could get diabetic by looking at the two of them together, _Sakura mused while stuffing more food into her mouth to hide her grin. _If only I can be like this with Syaoran, without any pretense…_

"Sakura-chan, I don't mean to be rude…" Tomoyo started to say but paused hesitantly to look at her long lost cousin. "Did you bring clothing with you?"

Startled, she looked down at her own gown. The colour had already started to fade but she did not mentioned about the condition of her gowns to Yelan. After all, she was a guest in the Li castle and she should not be pressing her host for new gowns. Thus, she had made do with whatever gowns that Syaoran's four sisters had passed down to her. Nevertheless, she was grateful for their help.

Sakura shook her head. "I only brought an extra gowns and nightgowns. I wasn't planning on staying long."

That had Eriol's attention. He paused in the middle of his dinner and directed all his attention on Sakura. "What did you mean by _that_?"

Sakura squirmed and sensed a change in attitude in the King. _I have to be very careful around Eriol!_ "Well… I said I wasn't planning to stay for long."

Eriol nodded, "Care to explain that further?"

Tomoyo shot her husband a warning glare, which he calmly ignored. Sakura fidgeted in her seat and she had trouble looking at him directly in his eyes. "I… Er… I was planning to go back to the Li castle?" She immediately winced at what she said. She had not intended for her answer to sound like a question.

"Sakura-chan, I think it is best for you to stay with us until Syaoran comes back," Tomoyo said, trying to diffuse the tension in the dinning room. Eriol was clearly upset about something and that something was Sakura. Tomoyo could not fault him for this as she was worried about her as well.

"You were planning to head over to Kinomoto castle yourself," Eriol stated plainly.

Sakura could only stare at the man. _He can read my mind!_ Tomoyo gasped, "Surely you don't intend to go there alone? It's dangerous; we still do not fully know what is going on in there!"

Eriol sighed and leaned back against his high-backed chair. "Precisely. You will only put yourself in danger. Imagine what the mastermind there would do if they knew you are the real princess."

Tomoyo stood up and rushed to Sakura, her eyes pleading. "Let Syaoran handle this," she said. "And stay with us while he sends us word."

Sakura had stopped eating. She stared at her folded hands on her lap miserably. "I… I can't stay here," she finally choked out her words, the tears brimming in her eyes threatened to spill. "It is a terrible feeling… to be unable to know what happens over there."

Tomoyo patted Sakura's back in an effort to comfort her. She, too, had tears in her eyes.

"One question," Eriol started and both ladies turned to look at him. "Why didn't you send out a notice once you were safe in Li Kingdom?"

Sakura brushed a stray tear away from her cheek and took in a deep breath. "I don't know," she replied honestly. "I thought I was in unsafe territory so I couldn't possibly be asking for pen or paper to pen a letter. What can I say? I was still young. Then, before I realize it, I was mingling in the castle as if I was part of the family. I simply forgot…"

Eriol nodded, his expression grim. "When did you realize your Clow book was missing"

Tomoyo could feel Sakura's body tensing up under her hands. "I don't know," she murmured and tried very hard to think about it, recalling where she had last left it. "I knew I had it in my clothes while I was running away from the Kinomoto castle… I don't know where I lost it."

"Did you think someone else had stolen it?" Eriol asked seriously. "Right under your nose?"

Her reaction was swift; she stood up instantly and slammed her fists down onto her table. The plates on the take shook with a clattering sound. "That is impossible! I told no one about my true identity! No one has been alerted to the presence of the Clow book. I…" she paused and her eyes widened as she tried to recall something very important. Something yelled at her within her body, willing her to remember that most important piece of information from her past. "No one knows who I was," she started and then looked up at Eriol with frightened eyes. "Except Hikaru-sensei… We met by chance in the inn… Could it be…"

_It must be him!_ Sakura thought. She looked at Eriol and the latter nodded his head to confirm her suspicions. The shock had left her paralyzed and she fell back onto her chair, trembling furiously. She hugged herself and rocked in the chair. Tomoyo knelt down beside her and hugged her tightly, infusing some of her strength into her cousin. "I have trusted the wrong person!" Sakura sobbed.

"Hikaru-sensei had reappeared in the Kinomoto castle about a month ago," Eriol explained and began pacing in the dinning room. "With a lady about your age with him. He has the Clow book."

"Sakura-chan, you have to be strong!" Tomoyo interrupted. "Your family needs you!"

"I heard something happened to otou-sama," Sakura said in between sniffs. "I need to know."

Eriol paused his pacing to look at her pained expression. "A few days after Hikaru-sensei appeared, King Kinomoto had fallen from a long flight of stairs in the middle of the night. It was said that it was a terrible accident but I have my doubts. Hikaru-sensei had been attending to him since then."

"He wanted to murder otou-sama!" Sakura exclaimed with a murderous look. "He will be severely punished for that!"

"Calm yourself down!" Eriol admonished and she fell silent. "It wouldn't do any good for you to burst into the castle proclaiming that Hikaru-sensei should be trialed for murder; we have no evidence. That is why Syaoran had to go in first, to understand the situation and sift out information about this."

"Why does he want to kill otou-sama?" Sakura asked brokenly. "Why?"

"We don't know," Eriol answered with a sigh. "But we mean to find out."

"And have me waiting here like some bread waiting for mould to set in?" Sakura asked. "I am not going to wait for news to reach here. I have to know what is going on in there!"

"You will only put yourself in danger trying to protect your own family from harm," Tomoyo said gently. "No one must know that the real Princess Kinomoto is still alive. It is too risky."

Eriol seemed to be debating with himself internally. His facial expression showed it all. Then he paused and glanced at Sakura. "At least stay with us tonight."

Sakura stared at him, incredulous. _Did I hear wrongly? Stay with them for only tonight? Did he mean that I can go home tomorrow?_ Tomoyo had the same thoughts too. She looked ready to chide Eriol for his decision to let Sakura go.

"Syaoran is going to kill me for this," Eriol groaned. "He stated specifically in the letter that you should stay with us until we receive word from him before we can set off."

"We?" Tomoyo inquired politely, though she felt inclined to scold Eriol off.

"We as in Sakura and you," her husband replied. "I will have to wait a day or two after you set off tomorrow just in case a letter from Syaoran is on its way here."

Sakura beamed and ran to hug Eriol. She felt a great liking for this man immediately. "Thank you!" she exclaimed. "Thank you so much!"

"There is one condition that you have to promise me," he told Sakura as she stepped back. "You will have to be under disguise to eliminate any suspicions they may have. Unfortunately, the only disguise that I can think right now is as Tomoyo's lady's maid."

"I'll do it! I'll do anything as long as I can go back home!" She said cheerfully and ran over to hug Tomoyo as well. "I'll be happy to be your lady's maid!"

Tomoyo laughed and returned the hug. "Silly. You will only be acting as my lady's maid."

Sakura nodded her head. "I know. Do you have any uniform ready for me?"

"Oh!" Tomoyo exclaimed with a smile. "You won't be wearing any uniform! I forbid you to do that! Instead, I'll have some simple gowns for you to wear."

"Won't that create suspicions instead?" Sakura asked, puzzled over Tomoyo's decision.

"Definitely not," Eriol replied instead. "The people over there might think that the gown is your uniform; Tomoyo's creativity in fashion can be seen from the way our staff wear their uniform."

Sakura nodded, "No wonder it felt strange when I lay my eyes on the guards in this castle; their uniform is unique."

Eriol pulled Tomoyo to his side and planted a quick kiss on her forehead, the possessiveness was clear to Sakura and she blushed in response. She was thinking of Syaoran; both man behaved similarly. "All thanks to my dear Tomoyo."

Sakura cleared her throat, "Well… I guess I should turn in early. I guess it will be a tiring day for us tomorrow."

"Of course! It's exciting, isn't it? We won't know what is going on until we see it with our own eyes!" Tomoyo exclaimed then fell silent when she caught the warning look from her husband.

"You are not going for an adventure," he said. "You have to be very careful with each step you take. One wrong step could prove to be fatal."

"Yes," his wife lowered her head and replied meekly but not before she winked at Sakura, who caught her wink and tried to muffled her laughter.

_To be continued…_

* * *

**Hi everyone! How's the fic so far? I'm getting ready to work on the next fic update. Do leave a review! )**


	14. Chapter 13

**Destiny**

**Chapter 13**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**_August 4, 2008_**

(Disclaimer: CCS does not belong to me. I only borrowed the characters to write this fanfic.)

* * *

Sakura sat on a stool near the window and leaned on her folded arms on the window sill and stared gloomily into the darkening sky. A thunderstorm was raging ahead and the occasional thunders and lightning never failed to make Sakura wince. It was already mid afternoon but not even a hint of the sun's rays could be seen on the land and Sakura sighed heavily; the trip to Kinomoto land was postponed till further notice as the weather made it risky and dangerous for travelling.

Tomoyo had forced her to dress in the gown of latest fashion that complemented her fair complexion and bring out the shine in her emerald eyes. She had also dabbed a hint of rogue on her cheeks and lips and Sakura wondered why Tomoyo had done this even though they were not making the trip to her homeland till further notice. Sakura sighed and continued to watch as fat raindrops continue to pelt and slid down the closed window panes.

Sakura felt a hand on her shoulder and turned her head to look at its owner. Eriol was looking down at her with a warm and understanding smile, and then he pulled over another stool to sit beside her. "A penny for your thoughts," Eriol said as he too looked out of the windows. "It's a dreadful storm," he remarked. "I assure you it will pass in a day or two, or perhaps even earlier if the storm is being kind to us. So, do not worry about the ongoing in the Kinomoto castle; I am sure Syaoran is already there to take a look and help out."

"I can't help but be worried," Sakura murmured softly as she continued to stare at the dark clouds that refused to go away. "I have been away for too long. Ten years is a very long time…"

Eriol nodded compassionately and remembered the times when his wife told him about the tales and adventures she had had with Sakura when they were young. Mischievous and kind hearted were the very words Tomoyo had used to describe her missing cousin and he could always hear the longing in her voice whenever she mentioned about Sakura and the little trembles in her voice told him just how much she had missed her. He also remembered her expression when she was first told that Princess Sakura had returned to the Kinomoto kingdom about a month ago; she was extremely elated to hear such goods news of her cousin's return that she literally flew to the Kinomoto castle alone to take a look at her to assure herself that her cousin was back. However, her cousin could not remember anything about her at all. Devastated, she had returned to the Hiiragizawa castle crying her hearts out, deeply hurt that her cousin had forgotten something so significant to her.

"Indeed it ten years is a very long time," Eriol replied and leaned against the wall beside the window comfortably. "However, there are certain things that do not change no matter how long time has passed."

Sakura quirked an eyebrow at Eriol's statement and confusion marred her expression. Eriol only had to take a look at her to know how she felt, even though he had just met her the day before, and the expression she had on her face was so adorable that Eriol had to fake a cough to muffle his chuckles. That earned him a frown from Sakura and a discreet cough from Tomoyo, who had just entered the throne room.

"I can see that the two of you are enjoying yourselves together," Tomoyo remarked dryly, glaring at Eriol for teasing the ever clueless Sakura. "What had you laughing so?" she directed the question to her husband, who had moved to her and guided her to the vacant seat beside Sakura with a hand on her elbow.

"We were just discussing how long ten years were," Eriol answered with a grin. "And I mentioned that some things never change despite many years had passed."

Understanding lit up in Tomoyo's deep violet eyes and she blinked at Sakura, who remained confused over the current topic of conversation. It was Tomoyo's turn to giggle and she made no effort to hide it. Sakura pouted, "What are the two of you talking about?"

"You are still as clueless, aren't you?" Tomoyo explained in the midst of her fits of giggles. "That never changes!"

Sakura made a face at them but she was not offended by that observation. Indeed, she had always been clueless but the mischievous spark and the tendency to get into trouble was still present. That explained why she was often picked on by Meiling over at the Li castle. "And never will," she added with pride and then started laughing together with Tomoyo. Eriol just smiled at the two of them and thought that the two of them really hit off well together and can be considered as natural sisters.

Suddenly, Sakura stood up and excused herself, saying that she wished to take a nap in her room. Tomoyo blinked and stared as Sakura retreated from the throne room before turning to Eriol, "I have never known Sakura to take a nap in the afternoon before since she was four years old. This is weird."

Eriol enfolded Tomoyo in his arms and rocked them side by side, his eyes closing as he breathed in the scent of Tomoyo's sweet perfume. "Perhaps she is feeling a little tied," Eriol commented. "After all, there is nothing for her to do here."

Tomoyo, as if pleased with his explanation, nodded her head and leaned further into the embrace of her husband, savouring their closeness.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sakura had other ideas. Instead of going back into her room to take a nap, she went there to change into a set of more comfortable clothes and fetched a cloak. She would need it to counter the heavy rain. Then, she rushed to the stables outside the castle and instructed the stable boy to saddle a horse for her, ignoring the rain that was drenching her to the core. Sakura gulped at the size of the horses in the stable and suddenly wondered if it was a good idea to ride a horse without and practices or experiences. She dismissed her doubts in an instant, figuring out that nothing could be gained without taking on any risks.

The stable boy, upon receiving her instructions, looked at her worriedly as if he could read her thoughts. He was uneasy about this whole thing of letting out one of his king's horses to a fine looking lady like Sakura. He started stammering in his haste to explain his situation regarding the horses in the stables.

"My lady! I'm afraid I can't fulfill your request without the approval from the King!" He almost wailed in desperation. It was the first time he had encountered such a difficult situation and he was at a loss of what to do. "Please kindly get a letter of approval from the King before coming back again for the horses."

"What if I told you that the king and I are relatives, not to mention that Queen Hiiragizawa is my cousin?" Sakura asked and watched as the eyes of the stable boy blinked in confusion then turned wide. "And they would permit me anything that I want? Would you help me to gather any horse? I am really desperate for time," Sakura explained and then surveyed her surrounding, making sure that no other people were around to witness the exchange. She could not believe that she was resorting to threaten the boy with her relationship with Eriol. "I will shield you from any consequences. Bring me a quill and paper and I will write a note of explanation for you."

The stable boy was very reluctant but relented to Sakura's wishes. He quickly retrieved a piece of paper and a quill, along with a bottle of ink for her. Sakura put wrote on the paper against the wall of the stable, aware of the stable boy who was hovering behind her and trying to see what she was writing. She briefly scribbled a note explaining that she was going ahead to the Kinomoto castle and that they should not worry about her. Upon finishing the note, she folded it and passed it to the stable boy.

"Pass this to the King or Queen and they will understand. I specifically wrote in this note that I threatened you to prepare a horse for me," Sakura explained and the stable boy nodded his head and went to do what Sakura had wanted. He quickly saddled a horse and walked it to the front of the stable where Sakura was waiting under the roof. Sakura hesitated before the huge horse and was started when the stable boy bent on one knee right beside the horse, thinking that Sakura needed help up on the horse. Of course she needed help because she had never rode on a horse before and never even got so close to any horse before. However, she could remember that Syaoran was a skilled horse rider as he used to take training over at the Li castle though Sakura herself was not interested in such a skill. Now she regretted not attending those lessons with Syaoran.

Sakura thanked the stable boy as she used his thigh as a stepping stone to mount the horse. She congratulated herself when she was seated safely and the stable boy passed her the reins. "Can you point me the direction which I must take in order to reach Kinomoto lands?" Sakura asked, accepting the reins cautiously but before the stable boy could answer, the horse suddenly went out of control, perhaps being spooked by small creatures under its feet, and went dashing aimlessly ahead into the rain.

Sakura stifled a scream and tried to pull on the rein to control the horse but to no avail and was left thumping on the horse's back like a useless baggage. Somewhere along the route, Sakura lost hold on the rein and she frantically grabbed the horse's neck to keep her seat or risk being thrown off the horse's back.

Luckily, the horse calmed down in the middle of nowhere and Sakura quickly dismounted, rubbing her sore bottom to ease the discomfort of the horrifying riding experience and shivering in her drenched clothing. Sakura did not know where she was and had no choice until someone came along so she guided the horse to the trees along the path to hide from the heavy rain. She crouched down and leaned against the tree, hugging herself to keep her warm as the sodden cloak provided little protection against the cold. Sakura regretted her impulsive action and wondered if there would be anyone who would be travelling in this isolated path in the middle of the heavy storm.

Just then, Sakura thought she heard some rumbling noises like those from trotting horses and she became alert, sitting upright and craned her neck to check both sides of the road for any travelers. She dashed right into the middle of the path when she sighted a lone rider who was going on the roads at a very fast speed. She flung her arms wide and then started waving frantically in hope that the rider would spot her.

The rider spotted her with much difficulty in the bad weather condition and swore viciously when he spotted her within close range and veered sharply to the right, avoiding a crash with Sakura, by pulling hard on the reins. The horse whined its protest at being mishandled but the rider soothed it with a calm pat on its neck.

"What do you think you are doing in the middle of the road in a storm?" The rider asked as he glared at Sakura, who cringed in response. "If I am not alert I would have ran my horse over you! Do you understand how dangerous this is, little girl?"

"I'm not a little girl!" Sakura exclaimed angrily and then rashly lifted her leg to kick the man's shin. It was one thing to be reprimanded for lack of cautiousness and another to be called a little girl. She had hated being called a little girl since she was young as she wanted to grow up as quickly as possible to become as beautiful as her mother was. She was the goddess in little Sakura's eyes. She paused suddenly, recalled the familiarity of the situation, noticing that the man had stopped his ranting to stare at her too. She seemed to have seen the man somewhere before…

She let out a screech of indignation as the man pulled her up with ease to place her right in front of him on the horse. She was startled when the man pulled her into a tight hug and she stopped fighting him.

"Touya 'nii-sama?" Sakura asked softly, finally recalling someone who would hold her like this when she was upset.

"Ten years… Ten years," the man said brokenly, tremors shaking throughout his strong frame.

Without any more exchanges, the man guided his horse and trotted down the path that leads back to Hiiragizawa castle.

**To be continued...**

Thanks for all the continued support from readers. It's really encourging to have reviews as it shows that the fic is being appreciated and that I have not wasted my time to writing it out.

I do feel that there are a lot of things that I need to improve on in my fics... For example storyline, characters' feelings and emotions and some other stuffs. I will try my best to do more thinking so that I will be able to write better and more engaging fics.

Thanks for reading again. )

Sakura aka Michelle


	15. Chapter 14

**Destiny**

**Chapter 14**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

_**December 26, 2009**_

(Disclaimer: CCS does not belong to me. I only borrowed the characters to write this fanfic.)

* * *

Sakura was shivering from head to toe. The heavy downpour was making travelling extremely difficult and they had to stop a few times as visibility was bare minimal. Touya had shrugged off his great cloak and wrap it firmly around Sakura's shoulders, which she accepted gratefully for as she was turning blue from the cold.

Seeing that the rain would not be getting smaller anytime soon, Touya motioned for his sister to sit on the damp grass underneath the tree that they were seeking shelter from nature's work. Sakura glanced worriedly at the wet grass as she would definitely dirty his cloak if she sat down but Touya had settled himself comfortably on the ground and was pulling Sakura to sit down as well.

They lapsed into silence, not knowing what to say even though they have many things in their mind that they wanted to say. Sakura adjusted the folds of the cloak more snugly against her small frame and fidgeted, not knowing what to say to break the silence.

"I missed that kick," Touya said softly and turned to look at Sakura, who was trying hard not to break down in front of her brother. She missed all of them too. "I just knew that something was wrong when I see that women sashayed into the castle and announced that she was you. She doesn't even know who we all are! Where were you all these years? Why didn't you come back earlier? Otou-sama and Oka-sama were frantic when they couldn't find you after they came back and found the castle in total disrepair. They thought that you had died!"

Sakura choked on a sob and thought that Touya was blaming her for not going back to Kinomoto castle earlier and had indirectly created this whole lot of mess for everyone. "I didn't mean for all these to happen," Sakura cried brokenly as she thought of her father and lowered her face into her hands.

Touya sighed deeply as he pulled her into her arms, trying to give her some comfort. He did not mean to make her cry but somehow he had and he knew the reason why. His tone did sound kind of accusing. Irritated with himself, he raked a hand through his wind ruffled and damp hair as he thought of what he could say to ease Sakura's self inflicted guilt.

"Hey, it's all right now," Touya soothed, patting her back to ease her sobs. "You make me look as if I am bullying you in the eyes of passersby. Everything is going to be fine."

"It's not going to be all right!" Sakura burst out, pushing away from Touya. "I heard what happened to otou-sama! If only I came back earlier, he wouldn't have met with mishap! It was my fault! It was all my fault! "

Touya remained silent and pensive throughout all her emotional outbursts. "It is exactly like what he has said," Touya commented and Sakura turned to look at him with her teary eyes, a little red from all her crying. "You are pretty close to that Li brat, aren't you?"

"Li brat?" Sakura asked, sniffing a little and trying to stop hiccupping. "You mean Syaoran? Has he reached Kinomoto castle?"

Touya nodded and laughed at the recollection. He only stopped when Sakura nudged him to get her answer. "He arrived yesterday and burst into the castle hall, demanding to see the royalties. Luckily I was there in time to stop him from roaming around the castle wall; otherwise it may call for drastic measures and alert the suspicious ones."

Stunned, Sakura could only repeat, "Dr-drastic measures? What drastic measures? Isn't he a guest at the castle?"

"Indeed he is a guest at Kinomoto castle," Touya assured. "Since otou-sama met with an accident, Princess Sakura has been dictating over the castle matters and most undoubtedly under the instructions of the doctor. She explained that otou-sama has handed over the ruling power to her until he recovers but we have our doubts, for we did not hear anything from otou-sama."

Sakura gasped, "Are they trying to dethrone otou-sama? We cannot let them do this! We have to go back as soon as we can!" Sakura hastily stood up and rushed to her horse, which was tied to a big trunk of a tree near to the one they were currently resting against. She paused when she heard hoof beats coming to their direction and from the sound of it, there were many horses. "Someone is coming," Sakura told Touya in a hushed whisper, her eyes going wide.

Touya barely spared a glance towards the direction of the sound. He shrugged at Sakura's announcement and replied her calmly, "It's probably my bodyguards desperately trying to catch up with me; I left in a hurry before they can get every of my guards to follow me. I didn't even spare some time to explain to them what I have heard from that Li brat. I just took off like that. They must be worried sick."

Sakura stared at Touya and found that he was grinning from ear to ear and she almost laughed; he was not even feeling remorseful for making them worried but even seemed to be happy about it. She could hear the guards' distinctive yells for the prince as they rode closer to where the siblings were currently at.

"Touya-sama! Please reply if you can hear us!"

"Shouldn't you be replying them?" Sakura turned back to her brother and eyed him seriously. "They are worried sick about you. You ought to call out to them before you scare the life out of them."

"They will pass by this road sooner or later and find us right here since we won't be moving any time soon," Touya explained. "Besides, Yoshiyuki was with me when the Li brat told me about you. He should know where to find us."

"I found him!" A bodyguard shouted atop of his horse, waving back at the other bodyguard widely in the heavy rain to catch their attention. "Over here!"

Sakura watched as two bodyguards on horseback approached them and found herself amused by the shock expressions on their faces when they spotted their prince together with a lady. Only one bodyguard's expression remained passive and Sakura assumed that he was Yoshiyuki, the bodyguard who was present when Syaoran broke the news about her to her brother. They slid down their horses and knelt on one knee in one fluid motion, their heads bowed low in solemn respect, and Sakura thought that she would have missed that if she had blinked her eyes.

"That was some kind of chase," the bodyguard with short jet black hair exclaimed as he straightened up and received a blow on the head from the other bodyguard. "Ouch! What's that for, Yoshiyuki?"

"Don't be rude to the Prince, Takashi" Yoshiyuki warned his partner as he rose as well, frowning in obvious disapproval. "Especially when there are people around," he added and took a good look at Sakura, who was staring back at him with a vacant look on her face.

Touya noticed that his sister was staring intently at Yoshiyuki. "Do you know him?" Touya asked and when he received no reply, he gave Sakura a hard nudge.

The startled Sakura jumped visibly and then coloured deeply when she realized that everyone was looking at her. "I was just thinking he looks very much like the knight who…" She then broke off in alarm and she turned to Touya with wide eyes. "Are they supposed to… know?"

Touya shrugged as he made a move to stand up. "They would know sooner or later. Besides, they might have already guessed it from the way I rushed out of the castle after that brat came barging in. So, feel free to say anything you want in their presence, not that you need permission or anything."

Sakura nodded and told them the truth warily, anticipating their reactions, "Yoshiyuki-san looks a lot like the knight who had helped me escaped the castle when the rebels came attacking. Or should I say Yoshiyuki-san is the exact image of the knight and made them look a lot like twins."

Touya blinked and assimilated Sakura's words. "I believed that is his father. Am I right?" he asked, turning to Yoshiyuki for confirmation.

"That would be my father," Yoshiyuki replied solemnly. "He would be very glad to know that Princess Kinomoto is alive and well taken care of. I remember he was extremely grief-stricken to have no choice but to let Princess escape alone while he fought off the attackers. It was my father who has led the search team to locate Princess after the castle was secured."

Takashi was thunderstruck as he gaped at Sakura openly, the disbelief on his face made his expression almost comical. "Princess? If the princess is here, then who is the princess in the castle? I thought we only have one Princess Kinomoto?"

"If you had believed that the princess in the castle is our Princess Kinomoto, then you are totally fooled by them," Yoshiyuki snapped. "Our Princess Kinomoto is gentle and kind-hearted since young. The one in the castle right now cannot be compared to our very own Princess Kinomoto."

Sakura blushed at the indirect compliment that Yoshiyuki had given her. She was about to thank the kind guard when some sounds on her right alerted her. She frowned at the surroundings and closed her eyes to concentrate on the sounds of the forest. "Footsteps," She murmured after a short moment and opened her eyes to find that she was flanked by her brother and his two guards, all with their swords drawn. She turned fearful then. "Are the people there going to attack us?" She whispered but obtained no response and decided it was wise to remain silent.

The tension within the group was escalating. The men looked calm but the rigidness of their stance betrayed their expression. Sakura felt that she looked weak and puny being put defenseless in the middle of their protective circle.

Sakura almost screamed when a group of more than ten people came jumping out of the bushes in the dark with a sharp war cry. Her eyes widened when she spotted the weapons those men held in their hands. Their broadsword looked more deadly then the ones her brother and his guards held. She silently prayed for their safety and cringed when she heard the clang of metal against metal while the men fought to protect themselves and to protect her.

The men were closing in on them and it seemed to her that the odds were against them; they were simply outnumbered, not to mention that their group was vulnerable with their need to protect her. It was difficult for her to see in the dark but she was able to make out a cliff dangerously close behind them and if she were to look down by the side of it, she would most definitely encounter a dark bottomless pit. She shivered at that thought and shrieked when another two men charged at them and swung their swords around wildly. One managed to cut Touya's arm and he went sprawling onto the ground from the force of the sword. His guards flanked him immediately, providing some cover for the prince to regain his footing. Sakura hurried to Touya's side and cringed at the nasty cut on his arm.

Strangely enough, the attackers stopped upon seeing the fallen prince. They wore an aghast expression on their faces as if shocked to have actually managed to land a successful attack on them. Sakura stared as the attackers all looked at each other, wondering what to do next. Touya's guards made use of this opportunity to start their attacks, using the dull side of their blade to knock the attackers down and putting some of them to sleep by executing pressure of the back of their necks when they were caught unaware.

Sakura knelt down beside her brother who was struggling to stand up and join the fight despite the grave injury and the pain it had caused. She had taken a good look at the wound in the dim moonlight and informed Touya that he would need stitches for his arm as calmly as she could. It was difficult when she was already panicking.

"I can still fight with the other arm," Touya muttered as he stood up, his forehead matted with sweat. "Stay back!"

The warning came a little too late as an attacker emerged from the chaos and dashed at towards them at dangerous speed. It was as if time has slowed down and she was watching everything around her moving in slow motion. She watched as her brother tried to push her behind him for cover while his guards tried to stop the man charging towards her. In the next moment, she was pulled away from her brother and then plunging headfirst into the blackness of the cliff before she even had time to blink her eyes.

And the next thing she saw was darkness.

Syaoran rolled his eyes as he tried not to listen to the insistent chattering of the princess as he was dragged along by her, who was extremely keen on bringing him on a tour around the castle. Not a word of what she had said had been processed in his mind; his thoughts kept on returning to Sakura.

"The perimeter of the village is heavily guarded by guards on the surrounding walls and this is our first line of defense against intruders' attacks," the princess explained as she dragged Syaoran eagerly over to the parapet on the side of the throne room where one could view the activities of the whole village. "You see the wall surrounding the whole village at the very far end over there? That's the one I am referring to. That wall is much taller than the inner wall that surrounds the main castle though. Of course, there are more guards on the inner walls to guard the castle against attacks. So we are pretty safe in this castle. It was the latest addition to the kingdom other than the outer wall to prevent future attacks from befalling our kingdom."

Syaoran leaned against the parapet, ignoring the princess's endless chattering as he stared ahead and enjoyed the peaceful scenery just in front of him. He reflected on his short day at the kingdom and recalled the way the villagers treated him upon seeing him in their homeland. It was as if he had been living in this kingdom all along! They had shown no hesitation or rudeness against him, a stranger on a foreign land.

Suddenly, there was a big commotion in the hallway and many servants were running around frantically. Syaoran stepped into the hallway and glanced around at his surroundings. He stumbled forward as a servant crashed into his back, mumbling quick apologies before he ran away, continuing his shouts for one person. Syaoran frowned and turned to ask the princess, "Who's this Yukito-sensei that he was shouting for?"

The princess made a face, "He's the castle's only physician before Hajime-sensei returned with me. Seems to be quite close with my brother but he doesn't like me and I don't like him either."

"Physician…," Syaoran mused. "Someone must have been injured but this seems very serious to send the whole castle into this frenzy."

A servant who overhead his comment paused, panting heavily as she tried her best to explain the situation in the shortest possible time so that she could continue with her tasks, "Prince Kinomoto is seriously injured and that is why we need to find Yukito-sensei this urgently. The prince is reaching the inner gate and will be reaching the castle soon."

Syaoran felt the blood drain away from his face as he took in the servant's words. "What about his guards? Is anyone else with them?" He asked anxiously, shaking the poor servant's shoulders to get her to answer.

"His bodyguards are reported to be with the prince," the servant squeaked out. "There's no one else with them."

When the grip on the servant's arms was loosened, the servant dashed away madly, frightened to be in the presence of Syaoran. Even the princess was a little surprised at his outburst. "Are you all right?" The princess asked out of concern.

"I'm perfectly fine," Syaoran replied and tried his best to mask his anxious expression. He had to get to Touya to ask him himself if Sakura had came back together with him to Kinomoto castle while their group was attacked. Knowing Sakura, Syaoran knew she would probably try any means to come back to her own kingdom. "Please excuse me; I have some matters to attend to at once. Good day to you."

Before the princess could even make a single protest, Syaoran took off in a rush. It took him a while to find out Touya's location. His guards had brought him through the entrance of the castle using a makeshift stretcher, their expressions turned grim when they spotted Syaoran and Takashi left immediately without further explanation once he saw that the prince was in good care. Warning bells jingled in his mind upon seeing their looks and he paused when he spotted a figure kneeling over Touya's prone and bloody form. His alarmed gaze flew to the Yoshiyuki, demanding some explanation.

"We will talk later," Yoshiyuki said, looking pointedly at the growing crowd surrounding them. "After Yukito-sensei has performed the necessary emergency procedure here, we will move to a more convenient place. Meanwhile, Takashi will investigate into this matter."

A groan caught their attention as they snapped their anxious gazes to the injured Touya. He winced when Yukito applied some alcohol to disinfect his wound. He struggled to sit up when he saw Syaoran standing just a few feet away. "We were attacked," Touya managed to talk while trying to ignore the excruciating pain that shot up from his gaping wound. "They have her," Touya gasped brokenly as he sank back down. "They managed to get her!"

"What did you say?" Syaoran nearly shouted as he lunged at Touya to get him to explain further. Yoshiyuki stepped in between them just in them to prevent additional injuries on his prince.

"Later, Prince Li," the guard warned. Syaoran just let out an irritated sigh and started pacing around the entrance. "Takashi is investigating right now."

Syaoran suddenly paused mid-stride and turned to Yoshiyuki with a serious look. "Prepare a horse for me. I'm going after them."

* * *

**Hi all! I actually started drafting this chapter on Jan 18 this year. To think it was only posted now... My sincerest apologies! Do leave a review if you have enjoyed reading this chapter. Thanks a million! Merry belated X'mas and a happy 2010 to all my readers!**


	16. Chapter 15

**Destiny **

**Chapter 15**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**_July 10, 2011_**

* * *

"Prepare a horse for me. I am going after them," Syaoran had demanded with a serious tone, his expression hard as he looked at Yoshiyuki intently as if challenging him to deny his request. "Where's the stable?"

Yukito had whirled back from tending to Touya and started to protest against Syaoran's decision. "The roads are slippery and unsafe in this weather for horse riding. What if you were to injure yourself? Look at the rain! You can hardly see what is in front of you! How would you be able to find her?"

"I would agree with Physician Tsukishiro," Yoshiyuki replied with a calm face. "It is useless to risk additional injuries at such times. The weather is unsuitable for any forms of travelling; you may just lose yourself in the Kinomoto land trying to find the lady."

Everyone was shocked when Syaoran grabbed the front of Yoshiyuki's uniform and shoved him hard against the wall with a resounding bang. "If you were in _my_ position, what would _you_ do?" the younger man hissed. "What would you do then? Tell me!"

Yoshiyuki sighed and shrugged out of Syaoran's vice-like grasp. "I got your point," he then sighed again and turned to look at Yukito. "There is no helping it then. If Prince Kinomoto would permit it, you shall have our horses at your service."

"Well?" Syaoran asked Touya. If one did not fully understand the whole situation, he would have thought that Syaoran's tone was rude to the prince of the kingdom. They would have demanded that those who offended the Royalty to be put to jail.

"Well what?" Touya asked and started to sit up, grimacing when a burst of pain shot up from his open wound, earning him an earful of admonishment and then set about placating Yukito, almost begging him to spare him his ears from the usually long tirade. "Bring her back for me, for us and for everyone. We need her to end everything before it is too late."

Syaoran nodded and left the room. Takahashi caught the look his prince was giving him and understood his silent command. He nodded and left to follow Syaoran for he was more familiar with the Kinomoto land than the prince Li.

"I wish him success," Yukito said with a smile as he turned to the windows and watched the village that was just beyond the castle. He then stood to attention when there was a soft knock on the door and two figures stepped into the room.

While there was an uproar in the Kinomoto castle, it was a complete silence in the dark forest and it certainly unnerved Sakura who had just came round. She shivered slightly in the chilling wind and wrapped her arms around herself to retain her body heat.

She was really surprised that she survived the fall from the high ledge, not that she remembered anything during and after the fall but she was definitely sure she would be killed. They had definitely injured Touya and she was pretty sure they would get her no matter what. _Where was the guy who fell down together with me? _Sakura thought with a sudden dread. _Is he around the area, waiting for the perfect moment to strike?_ She turned to look at her surrounding suspiciously. Nobody was in the area with her right now and she was slightly relieved and puzzled. _Why did he push me down and then left me here alone and unharmed?_

Her right ankle throbbed, which brought to her attention that her bruised ankle was slightly swollen and sensitive to touch. Deciding that remaining at the same location that whoever has left her was suicidal and would not do her any good, she pushed herself up on her good leg and limped away, trying to find her way to Kinomoto castle. It was a difficult task in the darkness of the night; she had no idea where she was heading, not to mention that she could barely see what was ten feet in front of her.

Hoof beats sounded in the distance, ringing alarm bells in Sakura's mind. She realized that she was standing on the footpath that led to somewhere she had no idea of and that she had to get away from the path or she would be seen by whoever was coming her way. She limped to the cluster of trees just by the footpath and leaned against the strong bark, peering to the side to take a glimpse of the rider.

Two familiar figures on horseback galloped past her and she gasped in recognition. "Syaoran!" Sakura shouted and hurried out of her concealed location but her voice was drowned out by the loud hoof beats of the horses and they were gone from her sight almost instantly. "Syaoran…" Sakura called out again weakly and tears of frustration welled up in Sakura's eyes. She almost stomped her foot indignantly. Running after them be a foolish idea given that her ankle was not in a good condition and she would probably ended up being a permanent cripple if she did that.

Sakura turned to look at the direction where Syaoran came from. _They must have come from the castle and if they came from this direction… I will be able to reach Kinomoto castle! _ Sakura complimented herself for having come up with the connection but her smile died down when she looked down at her ankle and knew that she could only limp her way to the castle and god knew how far away that was.

"Very far," Sakura guessed aloud and then proceeded to limp towards her destination, not wanting to waste anymore precious time; her kingdom needed her and her family needed her. She took one painful step and collapse from the excruciating pain that shot up from her abused ankle and let out a loud gasp of pain. _Dear god! Please give me strength to continue!_

A nearby bush shuffled and Sakura froze instantly, fearing for the worst. Her eyes were wide when she scanned the dark area to her left. The sounds were getting louder and a shadow emerged.

Sakura screamed.

"She should be around this area," Takahashi announced and pulled his horse to a stop as he watched Syaoran performed the same action with such grace befitting of a prince. He mentally salute Syaoran in awe and felt himself wishing that he was a prince so that he could have many of his followers gazing up at him with awe like he did to Syaoran.

"Sakura!" Syaoran suddenly shouted and pushed his horse into a slow canter, straining his ears for the slightest noise. "Answer me Sakura!"

Takahashi cleared his throat to gain Syaoran's attention. The latter swung back and stared at him with his piercing eyes. Takahashi felt himself gulping down on his words. "I was thinking," Takahashi said jerkingly, aware of the stare of the prince as he looked elsewhere. "The princess might be unconscious and may not be able to respond. She fell from great height after all. I mean… perhaps we should search on foot here? Chances of finding her on foot are much higher than galloping to nowhere on the horse and then risking the slim chance of finding her, especially in this darkness."

A moment of silence passed before Syaoran finally replied. "I guess you are right. It is difficult to find her on horseback. I will look about in this area. You go on further ahead and start from there."

Takahashi nodded in agreement and sped away, leaving a trail of dust behind. Syaoran slid down his horse and made his way into the cluster of trees by the roadside, combing his way through deeper into the forest.

_Please be all right!_ Syaoran pleaded silently as his anxiousness grew with every minute and every step he took. _Please let her be all right! I will treasure her and never ever let her leave myself again. Just let her be safe! Please!_

A thin branch snapped and swung towards his face with lightning speed. Although he was caught off guard, he ignored the slight pain that resulted and continued on, searching aimlessly. He was about to go further in when he heard a scream.

Icy chills went down his spine almost immediately. _Sakura!_

He had not realized that he had actually shouted out her name repeatedly as he fought his way out of the forest, combating the incoming branches that blocked his way and hindering his progress to the love of his life. His heart of thumping loudly and all he could hear was the replaying of the screams he had heard earlier. _Was she injured? Did the men catch her? Dear god! Please let her be there!_

Syaoran burst out of the forest and onto the footpath, his eyes wild with anxiety and panic as he scanned the area and found a small lump of figure hunched down into a ball about twenty feet ahead of him with a small furry animal besides whoever it was.

"Sakura?" he called out softly, unsure if the ball of shaking figure was whom he was searching for. "Is that you? Sakura?"

The figure uncovered her ears from her hunched position and turned her head back to look at him with tearful eyes. Her eyes lit up upon seeing him and she got up in a second, ready to jump into him but she gasped and went down on her knees instead, her hands bracing herself and prevented her from crashing onto the ground.

Syaoran was with her in the next second, helping her up and gently dusting the dirt off her. Sakura gripped his forearm for balance and never in her life had she felt this comforted by his nearness. "Syaoran… I thought you had gone away. I called you… but you did not look back."

Sakura was suddenly pulled into Syaoran's embrace. Initially, she was surprised and was at a loss of what to do. However, it was very comforting to be held by him. She rested her cheek against Syaoran's broad shoulder and hugged him back.

"I am never going to let you out of my sight," Syaoran hissed out while stilling holding Sakura. "Don't you ever leave me again, Sakura! You will definitely shorten my lifespan by scaring the hell out of me!"

"But I wasn't trying to leave you," Sakura protested, her voice muffled by Syaoran's shirt. "I'm just trying to get home."

"Just looked at what has happened to you," Syaoran remarked as he pulled back to take a good look at Sakura. He gently brushed a lock of hair away from her forehead. "All disheveled and nursing a sore ankle." Syaoran could not help it any longer, he leaned in and pressed his lips against her forehead. "But nevertheless, still safe and sound. I am thankful for that."

Sakura turned a few shades of pink and was glad that the darkness of the night had shielded her face from Syaoran. Syaoran would definitely tease her endlessly and she would die from embarrassment if he could read her current expression.

Without warning, Syaoran swept her into his arms, earning him a small squeak from Sakura. He then retraced his steps back to his horse which he spotted had just trotted nearby. He helped Sakura onto his horse and then waited for her to settle comfortably in the saddle before swinging up behind her, reaching past Sakura for the reins.

Sakura remained silent throughout the journey back to the castle, leaning against Syaoran and savouring their nearness. While they were at the Li castle, they had to avoid being seen together for extensive period of time and hence their encounters were usually painfully brief. She had to make use of every opportunity to get close to Syaoran .

She was jerked to attention when they reached the castle's main gate and could not suppress the surge of a sudden panic attack that struck through her body. Syaoran felt Sakura's body tense up in front of him as they neared the entrance. A large group of people had already gathered by the dimly lit entrance even though it was already late at night. It was as if they had known that someone was coming. Sakura turned and tried to peek behind Syaoran and sure enough, more people were coming towards them, most of them were villages from the area which they had to pass by before nearing the castle grounds.

"What's wrong?" Syaoran leaned down towards her and whispered into her ears while eyeing the people who were staring curiously up at them.

Sakura shivered involuntarily as he spoke into her ears and resisted the strong urge to cover up her ears with her hands while fighting her blush. "Wh-Why are you bringing me to the main entrance?" Sakura stuttered. "Shouldn't I go in by the servants' entrance to avoid raising suspicions and being detected? This is suicidal!"

"Relax," Syaoran replied and gave her a reassuring squeeze as he glared at curious onlookers who had dared to come too close for comfort. The obediently retreated after giving them what seemed to be a slight bow. "Let them see us. You are the rightful princess and there is nothing for us to hide."

The horse trotted through the castle gates upon the watchful eyes of the guardsmen. Sakura lapsed into silence as she watched the surrounding areas lit up by burning torches.

"It's good to be back," Sakura murmured after a long pause.

**To be continued...**

* * *

***checks the last update for Desnity at FFnet***

**Last update: Dec 26 2009?**

**Didn't realize that it was that long ago! Hope there are still people reading my work...**

**Do comments and I'll make the next update much much more faster! Try me!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Destiny**

**Chapter 16**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**_30 August, 2011_  
**

* * *

Everything happened in a blur. One moment she was on the horse with Syaoran and in the next moment, she was pulled off the horse harshly and landed on the ground on her back with a loud thud, completely winded and out of breath.

Sakura coughed as and tried to breathe properly, completely dazed by impact of the fall. She felt hands on her body and turned to see Syaoran hovering over her with a worried expression. He was saying something to her but she could not hear what he was saying; the ringing in her ears was far too loud and was drowning out all the sounds.

"Will you guards stop it?" Syaoran was shouting to the numerous guards surrounding them with their weapons drawn and trained on the both of them. "Who do you think I am? Who do you think _we _are?"

The guards remained in their positions and nobody moved an inch. He was squatting in front of Sakura, shielding her from any further unexpected attacks. The guards continued to stare down at him while Syaoran continued his death glare. Suddenly, Syaoran was not sure if they had heard them, being deaf, or that they had simply just ignored him. Boiling anger rose within him. After all, he was a prince and one that was unaccustomed to rude treatment.

Syaoran rose to full height, ignoring the pointed tip of the sword that was aimed at him, and stared down eye to eye with the nearest guard, who happened to be the one who had dragged Sakura off the horse while he was fending off attacks from all directions. "Remove your weapon at once," Syaoran snarled. "Who do you think I am?"

The poor guard tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword and swallowed the lump in his throat. Syaoran could see that he was already sweating profusely in nervousness and he took pleasure in that knowledge. "Who do you think _I_ am?" Syaoran asked again, taking a step forward and forcing the guard to take a step backwards.

"I have no idea, sir," the guard replied hesitantly. "But we were under orders to stop any intruders from entering the castle."

"Is that so?" Syaoran hissed angrily. "And that gives you the power to use violence on people who weren't even armed? Put away all your weapons or else you will really regret it once everything is over."

When nobody made any movement, Syaoran growled and pulled the guard to his eye level by the front of his uniform. The poor guard was dangling his feet in the air since he was shorter and his face had turned white, though it was not very clear whether it was due to fright or due to a lack of air. "Remove all your weapons at once or I will make sure that all of you present here will be dismissed from all duties with my powers as the prince of the Li Kingdom."

The guard was visibly shocked and paled immediately, realizing that he had just made the blunder of attacking a member of the Royalty. Satisfied by the answer he received, Syaoran threw the guard aside and hurried back to Sakura. The crowd of guards had dispersed a little and did not seem as hostile as before. She was already sitting up and groaning in pain, trying to rub the soreness out of her shoulder blades, which had most probably bear the most impact of the fall.

"Are you all right?" Syaoran asked, anxiously looking over her body for any sign of broken bones. "Sakura?"

"I'm okay," Sakura replied and leaned heavily onto Syaoran as he helped her to stand, trying to minimize the pressure put on her sprained ankle. "Stop blaming the poor man; he was just doing his duty."

Sakura turned and was astonished to see that the guard was kneeling on the ground, face on the ground, and begging for forgiveness. It took her several moments to react. Pushing away from Syaoran, Sakura hurriedly rushed to the kneeling guard, ignoring the protest that shot up from her sprained ankle. "Please don't do this," Sakura pleaded as she reached out a hand to touch the guard's shoulder.

The guard jerked upon the touch but did not dare to lift up his head, fearing the wrath of the prince from the foreign land. Her touch was gentle as she spoke. "Everything will be fine," Sakura soothed but the guard still refused to look at her.

Sakura paused to look at an approaching figure clad in a white uniform. The bespectacled young man had a kind smile on his face as he greeted her. She felt Syaoran moved closer to her and she tilted her head from her position to look up at him; he was reaching down to pull her up. In the next moment, she was hauled up beside him with him supporting her by his hold on her waist.

"Physician Tsukishiro," Syaoran acknowledged the man's presence but his expression remained unreadable.

"We have been expecting the both of you," Yukito said, smiling warmly at them but frowned when he noticed Sakura's slight limp. "I believe we shall have to adjourn the meeting until I see to that ankle. Shall we proceed to the physician room?"

"It is just a normal sprain," Yukito announced after examining Sakura's ankle and bandaged it properly. He offered her an encouraging smile. "It should be fine after one week or so. Meanwhile, do take note not to put too much pressure on that ankle or it will just delay the healing process."

"Thank you," Sakura murmured, a little unnerved by the gentleness the young physician had shown her. She made use of the time to appraise the room while Yukito was tending to her ankle. The room was not big and it smelled faintly of fresh herbs. There were three beds that were lined up against one side of the wall while on the other side stood majestic cupboards as tall as the ceiling and comprises of drawers of many different sizes.

She wriggled her ankle after Yukito had finished his job and was surprised that it did not hurt as much. The bandage was holding the cooling salve Yukito had prepared to heal her ankle but it had a weird smell. Sakura dare not complain about it as it was necessary and she did not wish to make Syaoran worry about her further.

Yukito stood up and turned to face Syaoran, wiping his hands on a clean cloth. "Now that this is done, I believe it is time you make your way to the throne room. The _princess_ has been expecting your presence for quite a while. I won't be surprised if she is already throwing a tantrum at the moment. She has been very fidgety ever since Prince Touya came back and has been trying to see him."

Sakura gasped upon the mention of her brother and gripped the sides of the chair that she was currently sitting on. Her hands trembled violently at the recollection of what happened before she fell from the high ledge and then the darkness of the forest had left a vivid memory in her mind and at the thought that she would no doubt be killed by some unknown.

"Your brother is fine," Yukito spoke, as if he knew what her question was. "He is currently resting in his room and guards were posted outside to prevent anyone from entering under strict orders. Please rest assured that his injuries are not serious."

Sakura was not sure if she was more surprised by the fact that Yukito knew her identity or that he knew what her thoughts were. Nevertheless, she was relieved that Touya was fine and could not stop the tears that flow down her cheeks. She tried to hide them by quickly wiping the offending liquid away but it still did not escape Syaoran, who was watching her intently.

"I'll be waiting outside," Yukito excused himself to let the two of them had some privacy to which Syaoran was grateful for.

"Hey," Syaoran called out gently while he knelt down so that Sakura could see him. He reached out to clasp Sakura's small hands in his and waited until she lifted her tearful eyes to his. He felt his heart wrench upon seeing the tears on her face. "There's no need to cry now," Syaoran soothed and brushed her tears away with his thumb.

"It's just that…" Sakura paused to hiccup in the midst of her tears. "It's just that I am really glad that Touya 'nii-sama is alive! He was injured because of me and I can't forgive myself if he died because of me. If only I can take his place…"

Sakura was startled when Syaoran suddenly crushed her into his tight embrace. "Stop," Syaoran whispered brokenly. "If you were injuried, _I _will not forgive myself. So please, don't say it."

"Syao…ran…?" Sakura gasped when she realized that she had been thinking only about herself and her feelings but neglected about Syaoran's. _I'm so selfish…_ Sakura thought bitterly. Fresh tears started rolling down again and she sobbed "I'm sorry" over and over again.

It took a while for Sakura to calm down. She was still hanging onto Syaoran's neck and he was still holding her. Embarrassed, Sakura was at a loss of what to do but at the same time, she was a little shy as well. She had seldom express her emotions very freely and yet this time she had bawled her eyes out in front of Syaoran like a little kid without any reservation.

Syaoran noticed the slight change in Sakura's composure almost immediately and he teased, " I didn't know that you are such a crybaby."

Pushing away from Syaoran, Sakura began protesting and waving her hands about wildly. "I am _not_ a crybaby! I don't always cry."

"But you did cry for such a long time. Doesn't that make you a crybaby?"

Sakura pouted and looked away angrily, crossing her arms in front of her. Yukito chose the right moment to knock on the door before opening it slightly to speak to Syaoran. "Sorry to interrupt. I believe we have to go now; the princess has summoned for you again and this time, she has expressly said that she don't wish to be delayed further."

"Understood," Syaoran replied before turning back to Sakura. "Stay here and do not, under any circumstances, leave this room. No one would dare to enter the Physician's room without permission."

Sakura nodded her head reluctantly and watched with mixed feelings as Syaoran left with Yukito. _What would that princess do to Syaoran? What if she forces him to marry her? What if… What if… _Sakura messed up her hair in frustration, almost pulling off her hair in the process.

"I trust Syaoran!" Sakura declared out of a sudden, smacking her own cheeks loudly to get rid of all the unnecessary thoughts. "I trust him."

Minutes ticked by and there were no signs of Syaoran's return. Sakura was bored in the physician room, having nothing to do except to stare into space and daydream. "They are slow," Sakura complained while looking around the room for something to keep her occupied. "Do they really have a lot of things to talk about? I really want to know what they are discussing…"

"Maybe I can eavesdrop on them!" Sakura thought aloud cheerfully with a clap and then she was out of the room.

* * *

**Ooooo... She's going to eavesdrop on them! How fascinating! What to know what she is going to hear? Read the next chapter to find out! ^_^**

**Do comment! Thanks! **


	18. Chapter 17

**Destiny**

**Chapter 17**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

_**November 27, 2011**_

* * *

Walking with a painful limp was a tough challenge for Sakura and the fact that she has to keep a constant lookout for guards did nothing to improve the situation. She darted out of the physician's room when the coast was clear and hurriedly limped her way to the throne room, hoping to eavesdrop from the outside.

She was utterly dismayed when she spotted two guards at the door to the throne room, which made it impossible for her to eavesdrop at that same location. It would be disastrous for bother Syaoran and her should she be caught as a suspicious person within the castle wall. Who knew what would happen to her if she was captured? Sakura suppressed a shudder at the thought and retraced her steps while thinking of other alternatives.

She met no one else on her way back to the physician's room and she was rather surprised. She remembered that the whole castle was usually bustling with activities in every corner and there would always be people running about to fulfill their duties. So why wasn't there anyone around? The question kept swimming around in her mind but yet there was no answers.

Dropping back onto the bed that she had occupied earlier, Sakura began to ponder on the happenings within the castle. It really bothered her to learn that things were not the same as when she was young anymore. She was thinking so hard that she did not realize she was actually staring intently at one cupboard at the side of the wall. As if in trance, she hobbled towards the said cupboard and slid her palms over the surface and tried to remember something from her past that was reaching out to her.

In the next instant, Sakura was swinging the door of the cupboard wide open and staring at the contents inside; the huge cupboard was empty and wide enough for her to hide inside but that was not her intention. She reached into the musty cupboard and tested the back of it by knocking on the board. She was rewarded with a hollow sound which confirmed her suspicions.

Sakura took a step into the cupboard and tackled its back, rummaging the sides for some sort of mechanism and caught hold of small lever of some sort at the base of the interior. She gave it a mighty pull and the back of the cupboard creaked opened slightly. Sakura sneezed once as the accumulated dust for many years was blown out by a soft gust of wind from within. She then stood up and stepped into the back of the cupboard, which was wide enough for her to pass through, but not before she grabbed a lighted candle from the physician's room to guide her way in the dark tunnel that lay beyond the cupboard.

The special tunnel she was in at the moment was only known to members of the Royalty in the Kinomoto castle and the knowledge was not passed to any outsiders. It was to be used during emergencies and Sakura was taught the layout of the tunnel and where each tunnel was linked to when she was still young. She was glad the knowledge finally came in handy. The knight that had helped to save her when she was young did not know the existence of the tunnel; otherwise Sakura would have used it to escape safely.

Sakura turned melancholy at the thought of the past when the rebels had attacked the castle and caught everyone by surprise. She was picking some flowers alone in the garden outside when everything had begun. She still remembered the panic on the knight's face when he barged into the garden and whisked her away.

_Is he still blaming himself for letting me go on my own? _Sakura thought with a sad smile as she recalled Yoshiyuki saying that his father was grief-stricken. She made a decision to meet up with the older Yoshiyuki if she ever had the chance to do so and to thank him properly for trying so hard to save her life.

With the lit candle illuminating the tunnel, Sakura made her way slowly through the maze, carefully avoiding the numerous traps set in place to keep out any intruders. She then arrived at a forked road. From her memory, the one on her left would take her to the throne room while the one on her right would take her to the Prince's room. She recalled from Yukito's earlier words that Touya was alone in his room and trying to recover, Sakura made a last minute change to take a look at her brother first. And so, she took the right tunnel.

Sakura found the lever much faster this time round and gently pushed the concealed door open, making sure to minimize as much of the creaking sound as possible so that it would not alert the occupants in the room. This was just a precaution in case there were other people in the room. Yukito had actually said that the fake princess had really wanted to see her brother so she might actually be present.

She tested the door of the cupboard she was hiding and found that it could be opened relatively easily. Peeking at the inside of the room, she was astonished to see that Touya was not in the room as Yukito had said. The bloody uniform that his brother had worn earlier lay discarded on the ground beside the bed and Sakura's heart quickened at the sight of it. From the bloodstains, the wound was much more severe than she had initially thought. She began to worry about him even more.

The door to the room suddenly opened and Sakura hurriedly shrank further back in the cupboard. Her blood was pumping with adrenaline as she tried to calm her rising heartbeat. It was as if she had been caught at doing something bad. Taking a deep breath, she went forward to peep through the small opening again to see who the person was and visibly relaxed when it was Touya, who had his back facing her now.

She was about to step out of the cupboard and showed herself when Touya turned around. Sakura froze in her action as she openly stared at her brother's arms as he was wiping his forearms with a wet cloth.

_Where is the wound?_

Sakura blinked again and had to muffle her gasp of surprise with both hands. Then she had to hold on to the sides of the narrow cupboard to steady herself as onslaught on thoughts went buzzing in her mind.

_He was cut! I saw it with my own eyes! And all those blood…_

_Touya 'nii-sama tricked me?_

_Physician Tsukishiro tricked me?_

_Why?_

Doubts started to form within her mind and she was filled with dread; her conclusion was not a pleasant one. She hurriedly retreated back into the tunnel and broke out in cold sweat. She had to get to Syaoran and tell him about her newfound discovery and suspicion.

Sakura retraced her steps back to the forked road and took the left tunnel this time round which would lead her to a hidden door within the throne room. She was hoping she could get a chance to signal to Syaoran so that she could talk to him and relay what she saw.

In a matter of minutes, Sakura reached her destination. She pressed her ear against the door and frowned intently, trying to hear what was being said in the throne room. She was not disappointed; Syaoran's voice could be heard, as well as a woman's voice she could not recognize. However, it was definitely not her mother's voice as the one she was hearing right now had a shrill ring to it. Just hearing the sound of it irritated Sakura immensely, especially when she knew the lady was trying to get close to Syaoran. A spurt of jealously erupted from within her and she had to control herself from hurling herself into the throne room and drag Syaoran as far away as possible.

There were no other voices from within the throne room and Sakura assumed that they were the only two occupants. Therefore, she picked up the courage to open the door to take a quick peek. True to her assumption, Syaoran and a long haired lady were sitting on the throne but she could only see their backs since the door was right behind the throne. She noted with annoyance that the lady was clinging to his arm and sitting much too close to him to her liking. She decided that she disliked the lady immediately, not caring whoever she was.

Setting her annoyance aside, she needed to get Syaoran's attention. She could not help but overhear what they were talking about.

"My prince," the princess drawled out as she leaned her head against Syaoran's muscled arm. "What do you think about hastening our wedding ceremony? I want to fulfill Otou-sama's wishes as soon as possible."

"It is an honour," Syaoran replied after a momentary hesitation.

The princess pulled away from Syaoran with a squeal of delight. She gave Syaoran a tight hug and told him, "I will let Oka-sama know of this great news right away! She has been waiting for this day for so long!"

Syaoran let out a sigh of relief and visibly sagged in his seat. He almost jumped out of his own skin when he was suddenly tackled from his back and gagged when a manacle arm wound around his neck and tightened on his throat. "You agreed to marry her?" Sakura asked tearfully, choking back on her sobs that she could not hold back. "How could you do this to me?"

"What?" Syaoran exclaimed and paled when he realized Sakura had overheard their exchange. He hurriedly tried to explain the situation to her, lest she misunderstood his actions any further than this. "I was just trying to delay some time! In any case, I am engaged to Princess Kinomoto, who happens to be _you_! There is nothing going on between me and her!"

Syaoran had stood up and moved away from the throne and Sakura was still hanging onto his back. Her hold on him relaxed upon his declaration but a pout still remain upon her face, casting just a little bit of doubt on his words. "Nothing?" Sakura tested.

"Nothing! I swear!"

Sakura sighed and let her hands drop to circle his waist from the back. She leaned forward to touch her forehead to the middle of his back. "Promise me, don't let other girls get close to you…"

Syaoran blinked and a sly grin formed on his lips as she pulled Sakura to his front so that he could hug her back. "Are you jealous?" Syaoran whispered into her ear, sending little tremors coursing through her body.

The blush was instantaneous as Sakura tried to deny the truth. When it failed, she tried to change the topic and that was when she remembered the reason for her rush to see Syaoran. "Syaoran! I think Touya 'nii-sama is a fake too!"

Syaoran was taken aback and he frowned. "What made you say so? He seems genuine to me. Just look at the wound he suffered to bring you back here."

Sakura shook her head frantically and her grip on Syaoran's arm tightened in respond to her increasing panic level. "No! There is no wound! I saw it with my own eyes! If he is the real onii-sama, why did he have to pretend to be wounded right in front of me? I was pushed down the ledge. Did he order the attacker to do that just to get rid of me? Did he think that I am the fake princess instead? Why did he lie? Why did Physician Tsukishiro lie to me too?"

Syaoran could feel an impending headache washing over him as Sakura shot questions after questions at him. He had to take some time to digest all the questions that she had asked. "Sakura," he called and Sakura stopped talking immediately to look up at him. "Relax; it wouldn't be good to be thinking about so many things at once. Let's take this one step at a time shall we?"

"There is no time!" Sakura almost wailed, her hands fisted on his chest. "If this is delayed any further, you will be married to that princess in no time!"

"I will not marry her," Syaoran assured and tried to pull her into his arms again.

"How?" Sakura asked and tried to push Syaoran away. "She is the legal princess now while I am still a nobody. How can you be so sure of something that has yet to happen? Moreover, I have no proof to dispute that she is a fake princess while I am, in fact, the real one?"

"There will somehow be a way out of this mess," Syaoran said.

"The only proof of being Princess Kinomoto was the book…" Sakura started to explain but broke off mid-sentence when she heard footsteps outside the throne room. Her eyes widened in fear.

"It must be the princess," Syaoran guessed aloud as he sought for some place to hide Sakura away. He was surprised when Sakura pulled him towards the back of the throne and even more so when the hidden door opened under her nimble fingers. A second later, the both of them were safely hidden within the secret garden.

* * *

**Chapter was released according to the schedule found at my site! You can check out the release schedule there! And... it would make me really happy to see some reviews. ^o^ Hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	19. Chapter 18

**Destiny **

**Chapter 18**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**_December 7, 2011_**

* * *

"That was dangerous," Syaoran whispered as he stared in awe at the closed trap door he just went through from the throne room. He could hear the princess calling for him distinctively from within the tunnel through the concealed partition. "I didn't know that such thing actually exist here."

Sakura, who was still pressed tightly against Syaoran during the shuffle, was unable to make any remarks to his previous statements for she was too busy blushing from her head to her toes. She was trying to control her heart from beating much too fast as she had a feeling that Syaoran could actually feel her erratic heartbeat from their nearness. In addition, it felt to good to be in his arms every time that she forgot where they were and what they were intending to do.

When Sakura did not move a few moments later, Syaoran gently pat her shoulders to get her attention, which he succeeded. Sakura slowly tilted her head up towards him shyly and tried to disentangle herself from him. He reached out a hand to steady her as she stumbled on her twisted ankle.

"What?" Sakura asked when Syaoran just stared at Sakura and did not say anything.

Syaoran blinked and then smiled sheepishly. "It's nothing… I'm just really glad that you are Kinomoto Sakura, the _real_ princess of Kinomoto Kingdom. I can't bear to think myself being shackled to the chatterbox glue out there in the throne room. I think I will really go crazy whenever she talks non-stop around me over everything and anything."

Sakura gaped at him and then started fuming. She suddenly pushed away from him and limped to the other side of the tunnel, leaving him behind. Puzzled, Syaoran hurriedly gave chase. "Sakura, what's wrong?"

Limping towards any tunnel she caught sight of, Sakura was determined to ignore him while anger was brewing within her. _How dare he compare me with her? I am not her! We aren't even alike to begin with…_

Syaoran continued to do whatever he could to appease Sakura, whose sudden anger took him by surprise and helplessness. He wondered if it was something that he had said that riled Sakura but being a good-natured person such as herself, she was rarely in a bad mood. He tried recalling what he had said and could not come up with any possible reasons.

Her sudden halt took him by surprise that he almost banged into her. He had to thank his super fast reflexes that prevent him from knocking into her and causing her even more injuries even though they would be rather minor like some scratches on her supple white skin. Syaoran blinked and re-processed what he had just thought of and then frantically shook his head at himself. He had to remind himself to keep his thoughts pure. _Pure thoughts… Pure thoughts!_

"I…" Sakura whispered with her back still facing him. Syaoran had to strain his ear to catch whatever she was trying to say and was a little shocked by what he heard next. "I don't like it when you think of other people whenever you are thinking about me. You… You can only think about me and only me. No other people."

Syaoran took in her small frame and her hands fisted up by her sides and knew that she was very serious about what she had said indeed. He dare not try to tease her again lest he made the mistake of riling her up again accidentally either by his careless words or actions. Deciding that it was the best course of action, Syaoran moved forward and enveloped her in his arms to comfort her.

He could hear her soft gasp of surprise but he felt no resistance from her. She just let him pull her into his arms and remained there, not moving even an inch away. "With you around me, there is no need for me to ever think about other people. I have eyes for only you, always. You don't have to worry on that account. You have my word."

Since her back was to him, he did not catch the shy smile on her face and Sakura was glad that this was the case. She did not want Syaoran to know how relieved she felt when she heard his vow to her. She knew she was being a little unreasonable and perhaps a little too childish too, to vent out her jealously fits on him just like that in a sudden burst of explosion; it was in fact a little unfair to him.

"Let's just settle my family affairs first," Sakura murmured and Syaoran heard it. He smiled, knowing that Sakura is trying to change the subject. He did not mind it and just let her do it. He knew she was a little embarrassed by his words. He, too, was not unaffected by his own words; he could still feel his cheeks burning up, an aftereffects from his bold words.

"You said your brother was a fake," Syaoran reminded her and wanted to confirm something. "There should be a wound on his arm but there wasn't any as you have said earlier."

Sakura turned to him and bobbed her head gingerly but then some doubts had started to cloud her mind. He did not let go of her though and kept his hands on her shoulders. "Could I have seen wrongly? The room was dimly lit."

"It's a possibility too," Syaoran agreed. "But whether it is true or not, we don't have time to go back and check again; time is too precious to waste. Those people may be malicious and do drastic things beyond our thoughts. Our priority now is your parents. We have to make sure that they are safe."

Sakura looked at him incredulously. All the while she has been thinking about her brother and why had he lied to her and it surprised her tremendously that Syaoran actually looked at the whole situation from a wider perspective. Now he had just gained her deep respect. She was actually glad that he was by her side in such troubling times.

"You are right. I have never thought about that," Sakura admitted.

"I suppose this tunnel leads… everywhere?" Syaoran asked, a little uncertain as he surveyed the area around them. The tunnel had seemed endless to him and if not for the only torch that lay forgotten in the latch on the wall near their head, which happens to be just beside the hidden trap door, the whole tunnel would be pitch-black and they would be engulfed by the darkness.

Again Sakura nodded, "I can still remember the map in my head. I have been forced to memorize all possible routes of escape in the event something happened within the castle. Only members of Kinomoto Royalty knew of its existence and are not passed to any outsiders. Be honoured that you are the first person not of Kinomoto blood to know about this."

Sakura reached up to grab the burning torch from the latch and proceeded to guide them along the tunnel to where she thought her parents might be. Sakura had remembered Yelan telling Syaoran in his room while she was hidden in the bathtub that the king had fallen from a long flight of stairs and has been bed-ridden ever since. There could only one place that he could be residing at present – their bedchambers. That was their destination and they had to hurry before the impersonated Royal members could do any harm to the rulers of the Kingdom.

She was startled when Syaoran stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder and she stopped immediately. She was about to ask Syaoran if there was anything wrong when he reached over and took the torch from her hands quietly. He held it up with his left hand while using his right hand to support her weight so that she could take a bit of weight off her sprained right ankle. She sent him a grateful smile to which he smiled back. Sakura could feel her overworked heart do another flip-flop within her.

"Will it be a long distance away?" He asked.

"I'm afraid so and there are some steps to climb since my parents' bedchambers are located at the upper floors. Most of the bigger rooms for Royalties are located on the upper floors. 'Nii-sama requested to be put on the ground floor since he said it is far quicker for him to access the training grounds."

"That sounds logical," Syaoran agreed with her brother's choice of room. "If I were him, I would also request to be put on the lower floors since it would mean faster access to certain important rooms in times of emergencies."

Sakura nodded and then both were silent as they crossed the remaining distance to her parents' bedchambers. Upon reaching, Sakura moved away from Syaoran to locate that small little lever which would assist her to open the concealed trap door. She would have to be very silent while at the task since they did not want to risk anyone within the bedchamber hearing the noise and reporting it to some guards. It would mean a lot of troubles for them.

The lever was easily found as it was usually located on the bottom and protruded out slightly. Sakura strained her ears to hear the ongoing activities within the room and was not surprised when she found none. After all, her father, the King, was sick and bed-ridden. It would be shocking if he could recover in a noisy room. Sakura turned back and nodded to Syaoran, who then placed the torch in the latch on the wall near the concealed trap door.

For the third time in the same day, Sakura stepped into the cupboard through the concealed trap door and peeked through the small opening of the cupboard door and surveyed the happenings within the Royal bedchamber. As expected, it was dark inside the room and light snores could be heard. There were no guards posted within the room and Sakura guessed they were guarding the room from the outside. She suddenly wondered if her parents were being kept in the room as captives or were they allowed out of the room freely.

"The coast is clear," Sakura whispered to Syaoran. "Both my parents are probably asleep. Do you think it is wise to go in and see them?"

Syaoran moved Sakura aside so that he could take a look as well. He spent several seconds squinting through the small slit before he gave Sakura a thumb up signal, indicating that they could go in. Making sure that Sakura was out of the way, Syaoran opened the cupboard fully to allow them to step out into the room. He came out first and then turned to help Sakura out of the concealment.

Her eyes immediately fixed on the sleeping occupants of the bed and she slowly limped towards them. Syaoran stayed back to allow her some form of private moments with her parents. Even from the distance, he could see the way the tears shone in her eyes as she looked at her parents. It has been ten years since she last saw them and it was no wonder that she would be overcome by the happiness within her at seeing them again.

Nadeshiko stirred in her sleep under the covers, as if knowing that there were people within her room. She opened her eyes slowly and stared sleepily at Sakura's form hovering over her for a few moments before she could register in her mind that she was not dreaming and that there was really a stranger in her room. She shot up from the bed into a sitting position and stared wide-eyed at Sakura and her expression turned fearful as if thinking that Sakura was in the room to harm her husband.

She was about to shout for the guards when she spotted Syaoran standing near the big cupboard in their room. The door of the cupboard was still wide open and the opened concealed trap door was visible from her position on the bed. Nadeshiko turned to look at the girl in front of her, whose tears were already flowing down her cheeks and dripping from her chin.

"Oka-sama," Sakura whispered as she sobbed and knelt down on the hard ground in front of Nadeshiko, who was still looking quite stunned.

"Pr-Prince Li," Nadeshiko stammered. "Wh-What is the meaning of this?"

Syaoran made a formal bow as his deeply ingrained mannerism kicked up and he replied with a firm nod of his head, "It is what you are thinking at this very moment."

"What nonsense is this?" Nadeshiko sputtered as she looked accusingly at Syaoran who managed hard not to cringe in response. It was always very disconcerting to be the recipient of a lady's glare. "My girl has already come back with the _Clow Book_ and we all know very well what it entails."

"The truth is right before your eyes," Syaoran reminded and looked pointedly behind him at the open cupboard. "And I think you know what it _entails _too."

With shaky hands, Nadeshiko came off the bed to pull Sakura up into a standing position and then her hands lifted to Sakura's face and she cupped her tear-stained cheeks gently. "Let me take a look at your face," Nadeshiko whispered as she did what she had just said.

Sakura sniffled and reveled in her mother's gentle touches. All she wanted to do right now was to hug her mother and be in her mother's welcoming arms. In the next instant, her wish came true: her mother hugged her, hard.

* * *

**Surprise~~ A bonus chapter update for all my dear readers for all your years of continual support. You can note from my website that there is no fic scheduled to be updated this week so yeah, hope you have enjoyed it. You can head to my website to check the schedule and at the same time comment on which series you want me to update first. Go! Oh, and don't forget to leave a review here. Thank you!**


	20. Chapter 19

**Destiny**

**Chapter 19**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

_**December 16, 2011**_

* * *

"Are you all right?" Sakura asked anxiously after savoring the feeling of being in her loving mother's arms after ten long years. The feeling of pure contentment remained the same and that almost brought back a fresh batch of tears to her eyes. No wonder Syaoran had called her a crybaby; she totally deserved the title he bestowed upon her.

Nadeshiko released Sakura from her embrace and took a small step backwards so that she could take a good look at her long lost daughter and frowned when the single lit candle on the other corner of the room did not provide sufficient light to her liking. "Why wouldn't we be all right?" She questioned as she shifted to light more candles to brighten up the room. Sakura stepped forward to help and both mother and daughter set worked together to light up several candles and handed one to Syaoran.

With a lit candle in her hands, she walked carefully over to the other side of the bed where her father was currently sleeping, undisturbed by the noises within the room. Surprisingly, no guards had barged into the room to investigate the causes for the noise they were making and Nadeshiko did not seem to care about it too.

"I heard from Queen Li that otou-sama fell down the stairs and was sickly ever since that incident," Sakura replied, her emotions almost choking her when she stared down at Fujitaka. Fine lines had started to appear on the edges of his eyes and his auburn hair was tinted with grey. It has been a very long time to all of them. While Sakura was growing up, her parents were ageing.

She reached out a hair to smooth a fallen lock over his eyes and gasped when he grumbled a little at her actions and then opened his eyes. Sakura blinked and Fujitaka blinked back, both equally astonished by what they saw. "Otou… sama?" Sakura managed to utter out before she faint from a heart-attack.

Fujitaka sat up on the bed, with his hair in a mess, and looked around the room. He seemed extremely surprised to find the small group on the other side of the room and then his attention was on the open cupboard that led to the secret tunnel. His face broke into a smile and then he started booming in laughter and caught everyone's attention.

Nadeshiko was beside them in an instant and beaming at her husband with so much happiness that the air around her sparkled brightly. Sakura blinked again, confused by their strange reaction to the whole situation. "And I was right," Fujikata managed to say that few words amidst his laughter.

Sakura turned to glance at the door warily, afraid that the guards might charge into the room at any instant. Syaoran also had the same thought as well, for he came forward and stood near the door in anticipation of any incoming guards.

"Oka-sama, otou-sama?" Sakura called out softly, as if afraid to alert the guards outside. "Are you both really all right? Are you locked inside your own room?"

Fujitaka had to suppress his laughter before he could reply her. Nadeshiko only giggled at his efforts before she took pity on him and helped him to answer. "We are not being imprisoned by force, if that is what you are asking."

"Not imprisoned by force?" Sakura repeated and her brow burrowed even deeper. "You mean you are imprisoned willingly? This is so confusing…"

"It is like this," Fujitaka explained and turning sheepish as he spoke. "I was careless and fell down the long flight of stairs and ending up breaking my leg," he paused and took a significant look at the bulge at the foot of the bed where his leg was. He shifted the blankets to show them his cast covered leg with a grimace; it was an ugly sight. "Physician Tsukishiro advised me to stay in bed for one month if I ever want to recover from my fall and walk again. I've been a good patient and listening to his advice."

"Then you are not being imprisoned by Hikaru-sensei?" Sakura pressed on, wanting to get her answers and was a little anxious when her parents did not answer them directly.

"Hikaru-sensei…" Fujitaka drawled out and then his expression turned serious. All traces of good humor were gone in an instant and the transformation was in place. "He was imprisoned, for his devious treachery."

Sakura eyes widened upon hearing the astonishing piece of news. Even Syaoran seemed astounded. "He was imprisoned?" Sakura asked and then realized she was always repeating whatever her parents had said. "I mean if Hikaru-sensei was imprisoned then… what about the princess?"

Nadeshiko looked apologetically at Sakura and then told her gently, "I really thought she was you. She looks almost like you, with the same hairstyle and build. It's just her mannerism that was a drastic difference but I was blinded by my desire to find you for so many years and I just accepted her as my own. Your father refused to believe her and kept ranting on about wanting to find the real you and I kept laughing it off, treating it as some kind of joke. How wrong I was when I finally saw you and the real evidence."

"Don't blame your mother, Sakura-san," Fujitaka interrupted reached out to clasp Sakura's small hands in his bigger and warmer ones. "The Clow book was actually quite a convincing evidence, just that she could not identify what was inside the book without the key," he said and fingered the visible chain of the necklace on Sakura's neck. He pulled it out to reveal one small key that would definitely be a perfect fit to the lock on the Clow book.

"I have the key and I know what is inside the book," Sakura argued fiercely. "I can prove it to you!"

Fujitaka chuckled and patted Sakura on her head. He looked over at the open cupboard with a knowing smile. "That was a concrete evidence of being a member of the Kinomoto family," he assured her with a gentle smile.

Sakura's eyes became teary again and she hurriedly brushed the tears away with the back of her hands when it threatened to fall. Fujitaka pulled her awkwardly into her arms and patted her on her back and told her, "Welcome back, Sakura-san."

Sakura hugged her father tightly, as if he would fade away when she let go of him. Fujitaka chuckled again when Sakura tightened her hold on him and snuggled deeper into his embrace. This was what he had been missing for ten long years and he would take lots of pleasure from being able to hold his own kin again.

"So that was the ruckus that I have heard," a third male voice rang in the room and Sakura stiffened immediately and straightened up to glare at the intruder. "And here I thought was some thief who managed to break into our strong castle."

"Who are you," Sakura asked coldly and stood protectively in front of her parents who took in the scene calmly. When the tall black-haired man did not answer, Sakura repeated her question with more venom in her voice than ever. He seemed to have came out from the cupboard too, for the door to the bedchamber did not open even once after they got in.

"Are you daft?" Touya asked back, crossing his arms in front of him and glaring back at his sister. "You can't even recognize your own brother?"

"Where is your wound?" Sakura asked yet again. "Show me your wound. I know you have one on your arm. You took the blow when we were at the forest."

"Oh… that was…" Nadeshiko took a step forward and tried to interrupt. Syaoran came forward to stop her immediately and gently pushing her back behind Sakura before he stepped up to the prince and glared at him from eye to eye straight on.

Nobody dared to move a muscle and the tenseness within the room was suffocating. "I told you where Sakura was," Syaoran broke the silence, his voice laced with accusation. "You went to the place and tried to kill her didn't you?"

"Me? Trying to kill my own sister?" Touya scoffed. "You've got to be kidding me, _brat_. If you think I would ever hurt my own little sister, think again. I can kill you this instant for trying to accuse me."

"Touya-kun," Fujitaka warned. "Manners."

"To this brat?" Touya asked, aghast. "I think not!"

"Show me your arms," Syaoran instructed and glared at Touya even harder when the latter refused to do as he was instructed to. "Fine, if you are unwilling to show me the prove, then I can only conclude that you have something that you are hiding from us and that would lead me to think that you are some kind of imposter trying to harm Sakura."

"For goodness sake, this is getting far too ridiculous," Touya said and let out an irritated sigh. With another glare, he thrust out both his arms and rolled up the sleeves for Syaoran's inspection, albeit a little unwillingly.

Syaoran stepped back with a suspicious look at Touya. "There's no wound on your arms as Sakura has witnessed. Why?"

"That is why I am trying to explain," Nadeshiko said and all attention was focused on her. "Touya-kun did come to me after Prince Li has informed him of Sakura-chan's location. I was the one who told him to bring her back so that I can see for myself which one was the real Sakura-chan and which one was the fake one."

"And so I went to find her," Touya continued grumpily. "And I wanted to play a trick on her since she made us so worried for that many long years. You didn't get to see how otou-sama and oka-sama was feeling all these years with you missing somewhere out there and wondering if you are still alive. So, this was sort of my little revenge on you but the plan backfired when the over-clever guard decided to push you off the ledge. He was lucky that it was not very high, though he did take the brunt of the fall and ended up with a broken leg."

"That was mean!" Sakura complained and gave her brother an angry punch. "You tricked me! I was worried for nothing! Physician Tsukishiro too!"

"Well, he didn't exactly deceive you," Touya protested and tried to explain further. "He did say that I was fine."

"It's still the same no matter what you say," Sakura retorted with a frown. She too crossed her arms in front of her chest in defiance, her eyes spitting fire at her brother.

"Kinomoto-sama," Syaoran started, addressing both the rulers of the Kingdom. "What are we going to do about the princess?"

Sakura's ears perked upon hearing Syaoran's question and her brother was suddenly forgotten as she turned her full attention to the discussion at hand. She did not miss Nadeshiko's reaction; she had cringed when presented with the question.

"She came a little earlier…" Nadeshiko started but then paused, unable to continue when she looked at Sakura and Syaoran standing so close together. "And was very excited that Prince Li is willing to push the wedding forward."

Syaoran slapped a hand on his face and sighed into it, "She took it for real…"

Sakura looked accusingly at Syaoran and pouted at him, "That's what you get for agreeing with her haphazardly."

"You are two-timing my sister?" Touya roared and pulled Syaoran up by the front of his shirt. "You better explain yourself."

"I did not!" Syaoran replied defensively. "I had no choice in that situation and I didn't clearly say yes to her."

"And you didn't clearly said no to her either," Touya completed his sentence for him and began shaking Syaoran like a leaf in the tree. "You two-timing brat!"

Her anger started anew upon remembering the scene she witnessed at the throne room. The princess had actually flung herself into Syaoran's arms and he made no move to disentangle from her. The closeness between them unnerved Sakura to the point that her jealousy rose sky high and she began to doubt their relationship with each other. Who were they to each other?

"Otou-sama, oka-sama," Sakura called out softly, totally ignoring the battling two guys in the room. "Is my old room still in use?"

Fujitaka shook his head. "I left it for you and knew you will come back someday, somehow. You must be tired, you can use it for the night."

"Thank you," Sakura said gratefully and turned to leave the room by the door. She had so much to think that she doubted she would be able to sleep peacefully that night. Nevertheless, she needed some time alone to think about everything: how was she going to face that princess? It seemed that her parents were somehow attached to the lady even though she was not the real princess.

Would Syaoran really be marrying that lady?

Sakura suddenly had a bad premonition about everything.

* * *

**What do you think of the story so far? Let me know through your reviews! You can check my update schedule over at my website too! And maybe some sneak peek on upcoming chapters if you are lucky enough!**


	21. Chapter 20

**Destiny**

**Chapter 20**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

**_December 23, 2011_**

* * *

A knock sounded on her door, to which she willfully ignored as she knew who it was at the door. No doubt it was Syaoran, for she knew he would be concerned about her sudden departure from her parents' bedchambers without first informing him.

Her room was as she had remembered from her memory which was deeply etched in her mind; she had longed to come back to the castle since she was young but never had the courage to speak out to Yelan for fear that she would harm her in some way. Syaoran, on the other hand, could be trusted but Sakura had so much fun being around him that she did not want to leave him and come back to her own country. It was a dilemma and a big price to pay for her choice at that time. Now, even though she was back in her own castle, she was not very happy at the prospect of Syaoran being wedded to the princess.

Would that be the price she had to pay for her decision to stay with Syaoran?

The sheer pinkness of her room gave her a sudden headache that she had some difficulties thinking clearly. She was overwhelmed by everything that had happened to her in the last twenty-four hours. First, she had reunited with her brother only to be thrown back into the darkness and fearing for her own life. Though Syaoran had somehow managed to save her and brought her back to the castle, she found out that Touya had somehow deceived her in an attempt to get back at her for her years of disappearance and last but not least, to witness Syaoran agreeing to the marriage between him and the princess, even though there wasn't any choice at the time he said it. Most important of all, her mother personally agreed with the marriage between them. Sakura did not know what was worst, Syaoran's agreement or Nadeshiko's promise to the princess.

Her head throbbed and she wrapped her arms around her raised knees on the bed and went into a fetal position as she touched her forehead to her knees in an effort to block out everything around her. She needed some time to think and she needed to be alone when she did that. The incessant knocking on her door did not help much but irritate her further.

"Sakura?" Syaoran called out and the knocking promptly stopped. Sakura stiffened on the bed when she heard him clearly from the other side of the door. "I know you are in there. Can you open the door please? We need to talk."

Sakura pouted to herself and resumed her fetal position on the bed, planning to ignore him. The thought of him agreeing to the princess brought her anger to another high level and that was enough for her to ignore him; her way of punishing him a little as she knew he would grow frantic by her lack of response.

"Sakura?" Syaoran called out again and continued knocking, making such a big din that her head swam. "Open the door!"

Sakura stubbornly refused to do as she was told and laid down on her bed. She pulled the covers over her head so that it covered her from head to toe and used the pillows to muffle the sounds. Squeezing her eyes shut, Sakura attempted to pursue sleep.

Thankfully, the knocking stopped after what seemed like a long time to Sakura and she visibly relaxed on her bed and stared blinkingly at the ceiling while thoughts continued to pour in her mind.

_Syaoran had actually told me that he will only think about me and nobody else… I should trust him more. He deserves my trust and he has already done so much for me than anybody else._

_Yes, he deserves my trust…_

_He deserves all my trust…_

It was already morning when she reopened her eyes and she yawned loudly as she stretched herself on the bed, not bothering to stifle it. The morning rays of the sun filtered in through the windows and illuminated her room and she saw glimpses of pink here and there.

Her breath was caught in her throat with the sudden realization that she was not alone in her four poster bed. She was trying to get off the bed by scooting over to the side when a firm hand by her waist had pulled her back. She stiffened immediately and looked down at the offending hand. She gasped at the sight of a large arm clamping onto her waist and preventing any movements from her. Then, there was a slight movement behind her.

Sakura's natural reaction was to scream as she struggled to scramble away from whoever it was. Her captor's hands went lax as if surprised by her actions and she went sailing to the other end of the room, putting as much distance as she could, her heart thumping loudly within her chest as she stared at her own bed.

"What?" Syaoran asked, suddenly alert as he pushed himself up on the bed and looked around for any intruders. He uncovered his hands from his ears when Sakura's ear-splitting scream had stopped. "What's the for?" he asked accusingly at Sakura, who remained seated on the floor staring wide-eyed at him as if he had grown two horns on his head.

"How did you get in here?" Sakura asked, almost screaming as she tried to even her breathing from the frightening experience. "I locked the door after I came in!"

Syaoran swung his legs over the mattress and sat on the bed looking at her pointedly before glancing at the big cupboard in her room. Realization dawned on her almost instantly as she blushed deep crimson at her over exaggerated actions. Shyness suddenly overcame her when she realized that she had slept beside Syaoran for the whole night without knowing. She peeped at him and her blush intensified; Syaoran was so good looking in his night shirt and with his hair tousled. It was difficult not to ogle at such an attractive man.

"I thought there were some people trying to harm you when you screamed like that," Syaoran commented as he scratched his head sleepily after the adrenaline rush had subsided. He flopped down onto the bed again with a blissful sigh and signaled Sakura to come over, whom obediently complied although a little hampered by her slight limp and she was suddenly conscious of the flimsy nightgown she was wearing. She yelped when Syaoran tugged her down beside him and enfolded her in his arms as he drifted back into his dreamland.

Sakura struggled a little halfheartedly against Syaoran which only lead to the subsequent tightening of his arms; it did feel wonderful to have Syaoran hug her and she relaxed visibly after a few moments when she gave up fighting with him. Letting out a blissful sigh, she scooted nearer to Syaoran for warmth while he pressed her cheek against the crook of his arm and pulled her even nearer.

"I'm still angry with you," Sakura murmured as she poked Syaoran through his shirt with one of her fingers while trying her best to contain her blush at their nearness. It was the first time for her, being so intimately close with someone from the opposite gender.

"I know," came Syaoran's reply as he opened one of his eyes to look at her. "Will you forgive me? I promise you that I'll only be looking at you and nobody else and I'll give my name only to you and nobody else? I love you, Sakura and I know you love me too. Forgive me?"

Sakura could not help it but laughed at the timing of his proposal, amused, when they were both laying on the bed in each other arms. Her heart did warm up a little when he confessed his feelings clearly to her and she felt herself grinning from ear to ear. He looked a little hurt when Sakura found his proposal amusing and he was frowning slightly, perhaps to mask his worry from her. In her heart, Sakura knew that she had already forgiven Syaoran much earlier and she accepted his apology with a smile.

Giving in to her impulse and feeling quite bold out of a sudden, she leaned up to press a brief kiss right on Syaoran's lips before she retreated back to hiding in the crook of his neck out of embarrassment. Syaoran was shocked but recovered very quickly with a chuckle as he used a finger to tilt her face up to his so that she could receive his heart-stopping kiss.

Sakura felt so happy that she could die right at the moment as their lips crashed together again. Sakura literally melted in his arms.

That was the scene Touya witnessed when he crashed into the room through the secret tunnel, thinking that something terrible had happened, alerted by Sakura's loud screams. Touya stared in utter shock at the loving couple on the bed still pressed together far too tightly for his comfort.

The occupants on the bed jumped a little at the loud entrance that Touya had made and both sat up to find out what it was. Sakura gulped when she spotted the seething Touya and hurriedly try to disentangle from Syaoran's arms but he was holding her to his side so tightly that made any movement impossible. Touya stomped nearer to them and was speaking through his gritted teeth, "What are _you _try to do to Sakura in her bed?"

"Kissing her?" Syaoran replied nonchalantly and Sakura gasped in horror when she heard his reply. She almost fainted on the spot at that. Given Touya's overprotective nature over Sakura, he would surely rise to the temptation of bashing Syaoran up and she suddenly feared for what was about to come.

Indeed it came, with such suddenness that she did not know Touya had possessed. He forcefully pulled Syaoran out of her bed within a microsecond and was shaking him violently by the front of his shirt and shouting words not mean for the fair-hearted to hear. Sakura did not even have sufficient time to react to that.

"How dare you try to seduce my innocent little sister who has just came back to us and right under our own castle?" Touya had shouted angrily as he continued shaking Syaoran who had a devilish grin on his face. "And not forgetting the fact that you are two-timing my sister!"

"Touya nii-sama!" Sakura exclaimed, aghast at Touya's choice of word and his actions. "You are hurting him," she cried out and hurriedly went to separate the two men and to put some distance between them before they could actually do some bodily harm to each other.

"That's for trying to seduce my sister!" Touya exclaimed in triumph when he managed to land a punch to Syaoran's stomach successfully. Syaoran, on the other hand, chose not to retaliate, not with Sakura witnessing it anyway. If he wanted to pay back for the punch, he would have to do it when Sakura was not around.

"Sister-complex," Syaoran muttered and Touya drew back in shock at the phrase and he seemed to stagger back as if receiving a heavy blow. Syaoran made use of the opportunity when Touya was not alert to make a clear escape. He grabbed Sakura by her hand, intertwining their fingers together, and made a run for the door.

"Where are we going?" Sakura asked when they neared the door and she looked down at her flimsy nightgown in dismay. "I am not dressed."

Syaoran halted immediately at her statement and spotted her robe near her bed and decided to risk himself from being captured again by Touya to grab the robe for her. "Open the door and get ready to run," Syaoran instructed as he made a mad dash back into the room for her robe.

Sakura obeyed his instructions without further comments and stood frozen when she caught someone standing outside her room with her fist raised, as if she was about to knock on the door. Both women stared at each other in wide-eyed shock and Sakura immediately recognized her.

_The fake princess… looks almost like me…_

"Who are you?" she asked icily and she glared at Sakura. "What are you doing inside this room? The Kinomoto castle forbids commoner into the inner castle. This room is off limits for everyone and is a direct order from the King himself. Guards! Take her away!"

Sakura took an awkward step backwards as the guards came near and collided into Syaoran's hard chest as he tried to slide the robe on for Sakura. Syaoran saw her too when he came close but chose to ignore her presence while he focused on helping Sakura into her robe and then with a gentle smile, he pressed a lingering kiss on Sakura's forehead with Touya and the fake princess as witnesses.

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut when Syaoran leaned down towards her and she folded her clasped arms in front of her chest for some reasons she did not know, probably out of her shyness in the awkward situation.

"Prince Li," the princess gasped in surprise, shock and mostly agitation at Syaoran's open affections for Sakura. Her face paled when she realized Sakura was still in her nightgown and the meaning it implied. She looked accusingly at Syaoran and screamed at him, "How could you?"

"Why couldn't I?" Syaoran retorted as he tucked Sakura to his side after tying up the sash of the robe for her. "I am, after all, engaged to Princess Kinomoto Sakura."

"What are you talking about?" the princess shouted as she balled up her fists in her anger, her waist length auburn hair swishing behind her back as she shook her head in confusion. Her expressive black eyes were ready to kill Sakura but Sakura stood her ground as she stared back at her defiantly.

Wrapping an arm around Syaoran's waist possessively, Sakura's eyes hardened as she looked at the person in front of her. With as much pride she has ever had in her whole life, Sakura gathered up her courage and announced plainly, "I am the _real_ Princess Kinomoto Sakura."

Sakura watched as the princess's eyes widened in pure shock at her words and her mouth opened as she started mouthing denials to Sakura's claims. The princess staggered backwards and seemed very disoriented out of a sudden. "No… This can't be…" she murmured as she raked a shaky hand through her hair in an effort to steady herself. "You are lying… I have been brought up as a princess ever since I could remember… There's no way I am not a princess… You are a liar! Imposter!"

Touya chose this moment to reveal himself as he stepped forward but not before sending a death glare in Syaoran's direction, to which Syaoran pretended not to notice. He simply looked at the princess and could not bring himself to be angry with her for the deception; she really believed she was the real princess of the Kinomoto castle from the desperate and hopeful look she was giving them. Hikaru-sensei must have led her to believe his lies and for that, this innocent young lady was suffering.

"The Royal members of the Kinomoto castle…" Touya started and paused, trying to find a gentle way to break the truth to the princess. "They have green irises."

The trio watched in surprise as the princess literally crumpled to the ground like the dead right in front of their eyes.

* * *

**Hurray for our dearest Sakura! She just managed to shock the fake princess into fainting from fright. ^_^ How's this chapter? I've also updated Be My Valentine Chapter 16 as part of this week's surprise update for Xmas. Do read it if you have time and I'll appreciate it. Hee... Visit my website for more info regarding the updates. Merry Christmas everyone!**


	22. Chapter 21

**Destiny**

**Chapter 21**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

* * *

It was as if she was reliving the moment in slow moment – the princess crumpled to the ground in a dead faint after Sakura's declaration to claim the rights be the princess of Kinomoto Kingdom and that she was nothing but just a fake one. The news must have been shocking of the poor lady. Fuelled with Touya's admission about the one single characteristic of a Royal member, the blow was heavy enough to warrant extreme reaction from the imposter.

All the royal members of the Kinomoto Kingdom did have green irises, all except for Nadeshiko who had married into the family. However, their ancient records did have exceptions and how the Royalty handled them was the same as those who had married into the prestigious family – by adorning a magnificent emerald ring of unique cut on their finger, an irrefutable mark of being a royal member of the Kinomoto Kingdom.

Sakura shook out of her reverie and bent down to the crumpled form on the ground with the intention of shaking the imposter awake but Syaoran gently restrained her with a hand on her shoulder. Surprised, she turned and looked up at him questioningly. He shook his head at her then, emphasizing his stand again. As if knowing what she was asking with her eyes, Syaoran replied her unasked question.

"Better let Physician Tsukishiro check on her head before we try to move her; she did fell hard onto the ground and we wouldn't want to risk any complications, however small it may be."

Sakura's eyes turned as wide as a saucer at his statement and she whirled back to look at the imposter in horror. She had not thought that it would be that serious. The imposter certainly looked normal to her, although she did look a bit deathly pale. She was suddenly gripped by a sense of guilt; she was the cause for everything and if she had came home once the castle had been secured, none of this would have happened and the imposter would have been spared this painful agony.

Not daring to shake her after Syaoran's warnings, Sakura smoothed a fallen lock of hair over the imposter's forehead instead and stared at her face. She certainly could pass for the real princess with the same shade of auburn hair and the same petite figure. Sakura guessed that she was around her own age and to feel the betrayal of someone so close to her, it must be very devastating. Her own heart clenched at the thought of it and she felt tears welling up in her eyes. Her vision blurred considerably but felt Syaoran's tug on her and she let him pull her up from her kneeling position.

"W-was all of it my f-fault?" Sakura asked brokenly as she leaned her forehead against Syaoran's shirt, trying to hide her tears from him. His response was a crushing hug that stole her breath away.

Syaoran pulled her deeper into his embrace, adjusting her smaller form in his arms so that she fitted snugly against him when she started struggling. "Relax," he murmured soothingly into her ears and her struggles ceased immediately. "Everything is going to be fine. Don't think too much about it. We'll work things out together as it comes along."

Sakura clutching the front of his shirt as if it was her only lifeline, she nodded after a few moments of hesitation in which she tried to absorb his words. She sniffled as she tried to keep her emotions in check. Footsteps on her left made her glance towards that direction and she blinked upon seeing her brother together with the Yukitio. She was a little surprised that she had not noticed her brother's departure before. Behind them, two footmen were holding a stretcher which Sakura presumed was for the imposter. Yukito gave her a quick smile before setting himself down to work and assessed the patient with tremendous speed.

Her brother spotted the two of them huddled together, frowned intensely at them and stomped over. Hell froze over when she saw Sakura crying, her cheeks wet with her own tears. Syaoran, upon realizing his impending predicament, hurriedly reached out a hand to ward him off.

"Whatever you are thinking, it's all wrong," Syaoran said warily as he glared at Touya.

"How do you know what I am thinking?" he asked back, crossing his arms and glared back at the younger man, who was still holding onto his sister. "Do you think you are a mind reader?"

"I don't need to be a mind reader to know what you are thinking; it's all on your face," Syaoran retorted and pushed down the urge to roll his eyes at Touya.

"Why are the two of you quarrelling?" Sakura asked as she looked tearfully at Touya.

Syaoran sighed and wiped off her tears with the pad of his thumbs, irking Touya even further at the intimacy of the act. Yukito had just finished examining his patient and ordered the two footmen to bring her back to her room using the stretcher they were holding. It seemed that other than a small bump on the back of her head, she seemed fine but he would check on her a little later and see her progress. He turned just in time to see that Touya was about to pick up a fight with Syaoran and hurriedly rushed over to stop the both of them.

"I don't want to have another patient in the castle," he put himself in between the guys and warned them. Subsequently, he propelled Sakura back into her room, telling her to get dressed for breakfast with the royalties. Sakura looked worriedly over her shoulder at the bickering men and Yukito hurriedly assured her that he would take care of everything. "Not another word from either of you. Both of you are adults – act like one," he added when Sakura closed the door.

"Are you calling me childish?" Touya asked in astonishment and he whirled back in disgust. "I am Prince Kinomoto Touya! And you dared call me childish?"

"You are going to be late for breakfast if you keep that up, _Prince Kinomoto_," Yukito warned and quickly stepped away from him, pushing Syaoran back to the direction of his own room.

Sakura's eyes were still puffy from her earlier crying episode by the end of their first breakfast session in ten years. Even if her parents did notice her condition, nobody had brought it up and Sakura was silently grateful about it. She did not know how she would be explaining to them and would definitely break up crying again.

She still felt low for what happened to the imposter and it still ate at her whole being. She vaguely remembered that she scarcely touched her food during breakfast and had a hard time trying to placate the worried cook, who had thought that her food was not up to her liking.

"Madam, the food is really tasty," she assured yet again and patted the cook's arms gently.

The elderly cook kept on bowing respectfully to her while looking at the floor, flustered. "Miss is being too kind. You are our castle's guest. Please let me know what went wrong with the food so that I can improve on it and serve guests of our castle better food!"

"It's fine, really," Sakura repeated and looked to Touya, who was sitting on her right at the long dining table, for help since he was in the castle for a much longer period than her and therefore should know most of the castle staff. "Touya 'nii-san! Please help me say a few words!"

Surprised by the title to which Sakura called their prince, the cook peeked up at the lady whom she had presumed was the castle's guest and did a double take. She looked almost like the princess but a little different.

_The voice? No… The… E-eyes!_

The cook dropped to her knees in confusion and bowed in her position to touch her forehead to the ground and asked for forgiveness for her inability to serve good food. Sakura was off her seat in an instant, kneeling beside the cook and trying to push her up.

_Green eyes… Royal member?_

"Cook-san, please!" Sakura redoubled her efforts to pull the cook up to her feet. She felt the eyes of everyone present in the dining area on her and felt a little awkward. "The food was delicious; please do not worry yourself thinking otherwise. I'm just… not feeling well. That's all. I'll be sure to finish everything for lunch and dinner later."

"Yeah, she'll do that later," Touya whispered to the cook with a playful wink. "When the little girl feels better, she'll eat like a _monster!_"

Fire danced in her eyes at his words and it was directed at Touya. Before he knew it, Sakura had stomped on his foot and he went howling in pain, clutching his bruised foot in his hands as he glared at her. "I told you I am not a _little girl_ anymore!" she seethed at him. "And I am not a monster! You are!"

"If I am a monster, then you are a monster too, since you are _my sister_!" He retorted and then a devilish glint lit his eyes. He grinned at her and he lunged and began tickling her sides without any warning as her revenge for injuring him. The cook looked shocked by their exchange and backed a few steps away, blinking at the bickering siblings in confusion, then she dashed back into her kitchen to spread what she had heard to the others.

Sakura gasped in shock and started twisting away from her brother's merciless attacks that seemed to go on forever, leaving her breathless from giggles and laughter. It was impossible to ward him off and in an effort to end her own torment, Sakura leapt away from own seat to put some distance between her and her brother, lost her balance and ended up on Syaoran's lap. Thanks to Syaoran's fast reflexes, he managed to pluck Sakura mid-air before she could have fallen to the ground with her sudden movements. The attacks stopped and Sakura clung on to Syaoran for support and balance by circling both her arms around his neck.

Sensing the change in the atmosphere, Fujitaka chuckled in his seat at the head of the table, patting his wife's hand on the table affectionately. "It is good to have a lively breakfast once in a while," he said heartily. "I've been really bored being cooped in the room for so long. Plus, Sakura-chan is finally back and it is about time I become active in my castle once again; the one month of rest is almost up and my leg feels fine, all thanks to Tsukishiro-sensei."

Touya returned to his seat at the dining table and remained silent for once, ignoring the couple and listening intently to his father's speech. Seeing that she would be safe from her brother, Sakura slid away from Syaoran with a grateful smile to return to her own seat. She was held back when Syaoran refused to let go of her waist.

"It's embarrassing!" Sakura whispered, feeling her cheeks heat up rapidly when he pulled her even closer to him. "Aren't you afraid that Touya 'nii-sama will beat you up? He seems to like doing that."

"He won't do anything to me as long as I have you beside me," he replied confidently and grinned when Sakura ducked her head beneath his chin to hide her face from him. He knew it would be bright pink from blushing by now. "Will you stay beside me? Forever?" he whispered the question huskily in her ears.

Sakura shivered at the unfamiliar sensation that passed through her body. "You know I will."

The door leading to the dining hall from the Royal's quarters burst open and the door crashed loudly against the wall. Sakura jumped at the sound and she whirled around to see the imposter standing there, her chest heaving with exertion and she was carrying the book, which was her family treasure!

"I am the real princess!" she shouted, waving the book wildly in the air. "I have the evidence here – the book, the family treasure of our family!"

Everyone turned to look at the imposter. Her face was still pale and the fact that she was panting means that she was trying to overexert herself. Sakura's brow furrowed with worry. The moment she spotted Sakura sitting in Syaoran's lap, she teetered on her feet, almost losing her balance and falling over her own feet.

"I have the evidence and she doesn't!" the imposter wailed loudly, enough to hurt Sakura's ears.

"The book…" Sakura started to explain and stood up. Syaoran stood beside her and grasped her hand in his to give her his support. She smiled back shyly at him before turning back to the imposter. "The book was stolen from me years ago… by Hikaru-sensei. He knew I was leaving for Hong Kong with the Lis and he took my book away from me while we were all in the inn."

"That's not true! You're lying!" the imposter accused angrily. "Hikaru-sensei will never steal from anyone! He's the nicest man I have ever known."

"Please," Fujitaka implored. "Take a seat while we have our family discussion."

Everyone watched as the imposter stumbled to an empty seat that was a few seats away from where everyone was currently seated, probably to isolate herself. "I have the book and hence I am the real princess. You have nothing to prove to everyone!"

"Easy there," Fujitaka advised and then sighed deeply. He knew this mess would not be so easy to be resolved smoothly. "First things first, can both of you tell me what this book is?"

"Our family treasure," the imposter replied almost immediately.

Fujitaka nodded and then urged, "What kind of treasure is it?"

That was when the imposter faltered. She blinked at Fujitaka, surprised at being asked such questions. "It should be a book about the entire history of the Kinomoto family."

Fujitaka just stared at her with a warm smile before he turned to Sakura, who was still standing by the table. "What about you?"

"I am not sure if I am allowed to speak about it in the presence of others," Sakura asked, her hesitation was evident in her facial expressions; she was darting glances at the imposter as well as at Syaoran. Fujitaka nodded, giving her his silent approval. Sakura gulped and replied steadily, "Well… It is not really a book but just a container which houses special cards with some inscriptions. Each of the Royal members is to select one card from the deck and write down their names on it…"

"How can it be?" the imposter asked, slamming her fists on the table. "It's just a simple book!"

"Then do you have the proof that it is just a book?" Sakura challenged, angered by the imposter's accusing tone. Then she remembered that it was all due to her that landed everyone in this mess and she paused to allow herself something to control her emotions. It's not the imposter's fault that she was led to believe that everything told to her by Hikaru was the truth. She could not blame her for it. "The book has a lock and there should be a key."

"A key?" the imposter gasped. "There was no key when the book was given to me!"

"Exactly… The key is with me all these while."

* * *

**First update for year 2012!**

**Some of you might be thinking: Destiny is ending soon... Yes, it's true. Probably a few more chapters to go and that's the end of the whole story. (Finally) First and foremost, thanks to all readers who has been supporting me ever since this story started. I kinda like this story a lot (a little historical and romance). I know I am weird but I kept re-reading all the reviews I have and it has become my motivation to continue writing for all of you. Hope you'll continue to support me!**

**Will you write a review for me? ^_^**


	23. Chapter 22

**Destiny**

**Chapter 22**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

_**14 Jan 2012**_

* * *

The key to open the book dangled from Sakura's dainty hands, its golden brilliance shining brightly in the mid-air as Syaoran looked at it in awe. It was a beautiful piece of jewelry casted in gold and studded with magnificent little emerald crystals as green as Sakura's eyes. The top portion of the key resembled that of a four leaf clover and was heavy studded with emerald. Its cylindrical shaft was simply gold and its shine was unexpectedly dazzling and did not fade throughout the many years. The bit of the key was a cute little rectangular tooth that protruded out from the shaft of the key.

Overall, it was a rare piece of treasure. It would have fetched quite a big sum of money should one actually decided to sell it.

Syaoran cast a sideway glance towards the royal members of the Kinomoto family and found their gaze transfixed on the key that Sakura was holding in her hands. The smile on their faces was difficult to miss. They must have been glad that their key was not lost and it had come back safely to them through Sakura.

"If you would please pass the book to me, I will gladly show you the truth," Sakura told the shaking lady on the other side of the table, her palm raising towards her as she waited for the lady to pass the book to her.

She clutched the book to her bosom for dear life, her eyes wide and frantic. Her grip tightened even more when she saw Sakura's outstretched hand requesting for the book to be handed over to her. "It d-doesn't change the fact that I am the o-owner of this book!"

Sakura sighed. It was a little difficult to get past the lady's wall of internal defense. "If you are the _real_ owner of the book, I'll gladly return the book back to you _and_ the key. Could you please hand it over for a moment?"

The lady looked at Sakura warily and seemed reluctant to hand it over for inspection and subsequent unveiling of the book. "Only for a moment?" she asked hesitantly.

"Only for a moment."

Sakura heaved a sigh of relief when the book was finally in her hands after long moments of cajoling the lady to hand it over to her. She took some time to admire the book that she had lost so many years ago while escaping the castle. It was as she had remembered it – a red book with its border enclosed by a golden frame and in the middle of a book was a picture of a fierce lion wearing a golden armour. A small tear shaped emerald could be seen in the middle of its helmet.

"Before I open this book," Sakura said as she fingered the emerald on the book to feel its coolness beneath her fingertips. "I would like to tell everyone which card the princess of Kinomoto Kingdom had chosen years ago."

"Please do tell us," Nadeshiko implored, linking her fingers with Fujitaka's on the table as they waited for Sakura to continue. Even Fujitaka was smiling and nodding his head at his wife's words.

The lady slumped back onto her chair as she watched Sakura, who was brimming with confidence. Doubt began to foster itself in her mind. Did Hikaru-sensei really lie to her? A tear slid down her cheek and she knew Sakura was telling the truth even before she opened the book. No one would have been able to fake the air of confidence she exuded. It seemed to come naturally to her, as if she was born with it.

"The card I have chosen…" she started and inserted the key into the keyhole located at the side of the book and gave it a gentle twist. The lock snapped open easily with a loud resounding click and she paused. "I have chosen the _Hope card_. I wished for the kingdom to prosper and the people in the Kinomoto kingdom to be happy and free from worry."

Fujitaka nodded his head as he took in Sakura's words. "That is a good choice."

Sakura grinned, "I hope everyone in the kingdom would live with a smile. The smiles I see whenever I went to the village to play were encouraging and full of hope. The people are very kind. Of course, that happened when I was younger. I wonder if they are still the same now."

"Many things have happened," Fujitaka said with a grim smile. "I do hope that the people still place their faith in us."

"They will," Sakura assured as she slid the clasp free from the lock and flipped the cover of the book open and a vast array of cards was presented to her eyes. The cards were slim and slightly longer than her palm and there were different pictures, as well as inscriptions, on each card. Shuffling through the deck of cards, Sakura pulled out four cards and placed them neatly on the table in front of her. "These are the four cards the current Royal family had chosen when they were old enough to write."

The Flower card, the Shield card, the Sword card and the Hope card laid on the table for all to see.

However it was not the end to Sakura's explanation. She continued when no one had said anything. "The Flower card was chosen by the Queen and it showed her gentle nature and love for her surroundings. The Shield card was chosen by the King to protect everyone in the Kingdom. The Sword card was chosen by the Prince and shows his inclination to protect his Kingdom and I have chosen the Hope card, to bring hope to everyone's mind," she said almost in one breath and then looked up at the resigned imposter. Sakura slowly flipped over the cards for her inspection and true enough, their respective names were scrawled behind the cards in the correct order.

"I still can't believe it," the lady whispered as more tears leaked from her eyes to trail down her cheeks. Sakura felt a pang of pity towards her. She must have felt betrayed by the person closest to her, who had been lying to her throughout her whole life. "I can't believe Hikaru-sensei lied to me all these while, saying that I was born a princess and that I actually belonged here."

Fujitaka sighed, sympathizing with the lady's plight. "To tell you the truth, I have known that you are not my daughter the moment Hikaru-sensei presented you to me about a month ago. Even though you may have looked very similar to Sakura-san," he paused to look at his daughter and smiled warmly at her. She had smiled back at him as she leaned against Syaoran's strong body. They seemed perfectly at ease with each other. "There are still some slight differences between the two of you. However, I did not say anything then because I wanted to know Hikaru-sensei's true motive behind his plot. Why did he bring you here? And why he chose to bring you to the castle a month ago and not years ago?"

"Y-you knew?" the lady gasped.

"Yes," Fujitaka replied. "I found out the truth a week after you came here and I confronted him at night about a month ago. He panicked immediately when I questioned him and there was a small fight in which I accidentally fell down the steps. Of course, Hikaru-sensei fled the scene but I sent some Royal guards to capture him back and had put him in one of our dungeon cells. That's why you are not able to see him. I'm sorry for lying to you, little one. He has not gone home but is imprisoned. He would be put on trial within a week's time and his punishment was to be exiled from Kinomoto kingdom."

"I-If I am not the princess… then who am I?"

Nadeshiko pushed her chair back and stood up. Everyone was startled by her actions but said nothing as she walked towards the imposter and enfolded her in a tight hug. Nadeshiko patted the lady's hair when she started to tremble and cry.

"Who am I?" she asked again brokenly.

"You are Hikaru Ayumi, Hikaru-sensei's daughter," Nadeshiko replied truthfully and the truth stung Ayumi's whole being. "Fujitaka-san has confided the truth to me yesterday night… I'm so sorry, Ayumi-chan…"

Ayumi froze in Nadeshiko's arms as the truth was revealed to her, her eyes widened as the information sank in. "I am… Hikaru-sensei's… _daughter?_"

Even Sakura gasped in surprise at Nadeshiko's announcement. "Hikaru-sensei's daughter?" Sakura breathed out and felt Syaoran's hand tightened on her waist.

"He had this in mind when he saw you with us before we left here for Hong Kong?" Syaoran asked, feeling disgusted by the lies that the physician had sowed and had subsequently hurt so many people and especially his own daughter.

"My own blood father lied to _me_?" Ayumi choked on her tears as she fought for control. "He lied to me all these while! And there I was thinking that my parents had abandoned me and left me all alone and yet he was my father all along!"

Even Nadeshiko's eyes went teary as she tried her best to console Ayumi as the lady went distraught and was devastated by what she had heard. "We're so sorry…" Nadeshiko kept on apologizing to Ayumi. During the short one month period, the two of them had become very close to each other. Nadeshiko had really thought that it was her Sakura who had come back to them and Fujitaka had not even once told her about his suspicions and the truth after he had confronted Hikaru-sensei. Not until yesterday night when Sakura and Syaoran had suddenly appeared in their room.

"Hikaru-sensei is too much!" Sakura exclaimed and her hands were fisted in her anger. The back of her eyes were burning as tears threatened to form in her eyes as she thought about what everyone had went through because of one deception. As if sensing her frustration, Syaoran turned her so that she was facing him and gave her a tight hug as he tried to sooth her. "How dare he hurt his own daughter?"

"Shh…" Syaoran soothed as he clasped Sakura to him. "He must have his own reasons. Who wouldn't want his own daughter to call him _father_?"

"What reason could he have?"

"He wanted to give his daughter the best of everything, which he couldn't fulfill with what he had," Fujitaka explained patiently. "He saw his chance when he sent you away together with the Lis. From that day onwards, he had been treating Ayumi-san as if she was a princess of the kingdom, hiding her away in his own home until he saw the opportunity to put her in the castle. He brought her here the moment he found out about Sakura-san's engagement with Prince Li of the Li Kingdom."

"What am I supposed to do now?" Ayumi asked as she looked wildly around the dining room. "My real father is imprisoned and would be exiled from the kingdom… I… I have nowhere to go…"

"I suppose we could send you back to your own home," Fujitaka answered, looking at Nadeshiko and she stared back at him with pleading eyes. This was difficult as he did not know what else he could do.

Sakura tried to put herself in Ayumi's shoes. She had just been told the cruel truth and the horrible deception her father had planted and had led her here in Kinomoto castle. With her father imprisoned, it was almost impossible for her to return to her own house and continued living there as if nothing has ever happened. Her neighbours were bound to be talking behind her back and condemning her for what she believed was the truth all along. After her father was exiled, she would have been left all alone in their home.

"What can we do?" Sakura murmured to herself as she closed her eyes and thought hard for an ideal solution. After all, it was partly her fault that had created the mess. True, it may have been Hikaru-sensei who started everything but if she had returned earlier, she could have saved Ayumi from her current torture. If only she had come back earlier. "What can we do?"

"How about giving her some position within the castle?" Syaoran supplied.

Sakura blinked at the suggestion and it crystallized within her mind. Her eyes lit up upon Syaoran's prompt and she knew what she could do to help Ayumi, as some form of penance. "You are a life savior!" Sakura exclaimed happily and stood on tip toe, clutching his arms for support, to press quick kiss to his cheek. He blushed in response at her actions. She then rushed to her father's side and whispered something secretive into his ear behind her cupped hands.

Sakura grinned as she stepped back from her father's side to look at Ayumi. She was so excited about her idea and was even happier when Fujitaka seemed receptive of it. He coughed a little to clear his throat as the rest in the dining room looked at him with curious eyes.

"I hope it isn't something unrealistic," Touya commented dryly. "To think that _monster_ can contribute to something this serious…"

Sakura crossed her arm defiantly at Touya's statement and resisted the temptation to kick at her brother for his snide comment. No, she did not want to ruin the happy moment with such a crude action. Fujitaka chuckled at the siblings' banter as he pushed himself to stand up too.

"I believe Physician Tsukishiro is having some problems working as the sole physician within the castle," Fujitaka started to say and Nadeshiko caught it immediately. He nodded with a gentle smile directed at Ayumi. "Yes, I believe you are a perfect candidate to be his assistant."

"I can continue to stay in the castle?" Ayumi asked in stunned, brushing her tears away. "But my father did such terrible things to everyone… and he even harmed the King…"

"Silly girl!" Nadeshiko exclaimed. "You are not your father! And I already considered you to be part of our family!"

Ayumi was stunned beyond words. Their kindness was infuriating that she burst into tears again and this time, it was tears of happiness.

"Now that everything is settled, shall we go and greet our people?" Fujitaka asked as he strode to the nearest window to peek at the courtyard. "They are already waiting for us."

* * *

**Surprise~ Another fic update for the week. Hehe... I'm procrastinating and refused to study this weekend and here I am!**

**The next chapter would most likely be the final one. Are you feeling sad that the story is ending already? I am!**

**I've changed the release schedule at my website. Do check it out if you are interested to know what I am updating next.**

**Until next time!**


	24. Epilogue

After 9 long years since I started writing Destiny, today I present to you the final chapter of my longest fanfiction ever (currently). I would like to thank you readers for the lovely 25.5K hits (as of today), 250 reviews, 88 favourites and 97 alerts. I know the statistics may not be high to some of you but it really meant a lot to me. Many sincere apologies for making you wait for many years to finish one stories. A million thanks for your patience and encouragements that brought me here to where I am today. Really. Thank you!

Hope you enjoy the final chapter of Destiny!

**Destiny**

**Epilogue**

**By Sakura aka Michelle**

* * *

Sakura could not believe her eyes! Tons of people stood in the sunny courtyard while training their eyes on the small window she was currently standing by beside Fujitaka. It was a high possibility that the chef she was talking to earlier had went to spread the news. Unconsciously, her hands had lifted to her gaping mouth to cover her shock. The resounding cheer that rang throughout the courtyard had erupted the moment she stepped into their sight and startled her.

She caught her father's easy smile as he waved back to his people and the cheer went even louder than before. Sakura's heart warmed at the scene and she felt the prick of tears behind her eyes. Everything was still the same as before and it seemed that nothing has changed except for her own disappearance and Ayumi's subsequent appearance in the castle. The people were as she has remembered – kind and cheerful.

Most of them were servants and knights from the castle from the uniform they were wearing. Sucking in a huge breath in an attempt to calm herself, Sakura also waved back at the people who were welcoming her return back to the castle. The smiles on their faces were something that Sakura could never ever forget in her whole life. She was finally home!

"KINOMOTO SAKURA! HOW DARE YOU DISAPPEAR ON ME!" Came a familiar feminine shout from down below the courtyard. Sakura blinked in surprise as she tried to find out who and where the person was shouting from. The crowd had gone quiet too and was also shooting glances around them. Apparently, they were a better judge of where the shout came from since they were on ground level. Sakura, on the other hand, was still struggling to find out but had followed the direction at which the crowd of looking at and it was to the left of the courtyard from where she was standing.

"Tomo-chan?" Sakura gasped. Even from the distance, she could still see the disapproving frown on her cousin's angelic face. Eriol stood beside her, holding onto her waist as if preventing his wife from rushing into the castle and wringing Sakura's neck in anger. Wincing inwardly, Sakura belatedly remembered that she had run away from the Hiiragizawa castle back here without letting her hosts know. She was so going to get it from Tomoyo for her disastrous act. "She's really angry," Sakura remarked to her father with a grimace and she turned to Syaoran with wide eyes. "And your mother is with them."

"What? She told me she was feeling a little unwell and told me not to bother her today," Syaoran said as he came over to the window to take a look for himself. He pulled Sakura against him as he peered out and did a double take when he saw her mother standing beside his cousin and his lovely wife. Well, he wouldn't call her lovely now; she was clearing spitting fire at them. "And I took her words for real and didn't think much when she didn't come down for breakfast just now."

"What is she doing with them?" Sakura asked, craning her neck to look at him.

"I'm not sure but we are about to find out. Let's go greet them," he said and pulled Sakura out to the grand entranceway of the castle and waited for them to enter.

"What would your mother think?" Sakura suddenly asked, a little anxious about facing Yelan knowing she had kept the queen in the dark regarding her parentage. "Would she think badly of me?"

Syaoran squeezed her shoulder reassuringly and offered her a warm smile that melted her into a dreamy sigh. "My mother has been taking care of you for almost ten years, she will surely know your character. After all, she did treat you as one of her daughters, didn't she?"

Sakura nodded and could only look hopeful, praying hard that Yelan did not blame her for the lie that she had spread since the first day they had met. A footman at the door announced their arrival and the majestic door swung open slowly. Tomoyo came flying into the entranceway in a blur of figure and tackled Sakura to the ground before Syaoran could react.

"Tomo-chan!" Sakura gasped in pain. She had landed painfully on her rear and Tomoyo's weight on her did not help to alleviate the problem.

"You made me so worried!" her cousin exclaimed and squeezed her in a tight hug. "At least tell me in person before you leave! My heart literally stopped when my stableboy came with your farewell note!"

"I'm sorry…" Sakura apologized and patted Tomoyo's back. She glanced up to see Yelan towering over her with a stern look and gulped instantly, fearing what she would tell her.

"Don't make everyone worry about you," she said and her face broke into a motherly smile as she knelt down beside her to pat her head. Her gesture almost brought tears to her eyes. "I'm so glad you are safe. I had wanted to bring you over personally upon reflecting the way Syaoran was always hovering over you and thinking to break off the engagement to Princess Kinomoto…"

"Mother…" Syaoran started but the lump in his throat stopped him from saying anything more.

"If I had known you are Princess Kinomoto," Yelan continued and her smile wavered a little as she got teary. "I would have insisted that the marriage take place ten years ago when we first met."

Yelan opened her arms wide and Sakura jumped into her embrace without hesitation, sobbing hard while she did so. It was so unbelievable that Yelan was being understanding and did not even put any blame on Sakura or even called her a liar. Even Syaoran had knelt down to envelope the two ladies he loved in his arms. It was a rare show of affection for the Lis.

"Now that's what I call a happy ending," Eriol announced with a smirk at his wife and she smacked him in return. He looked a little annoyed at being contrasted but all was forgotten when his sweet wife snuggled against his side and wrapping her slim hands around her waist in a hug.

"Not yet, there's still one more mission for them to pass through first," she had said.

"Shall we bring forward the wedding then?" Nadeshiko asked as she took in the scene before her. Yelan stood up immediately and went to hug her friends. Nadeshiko giggled in return and hugged back. "So I guess that it is an agreement then?"

"Though it saddened me immensely to see our little girl leaving us again so soon… her happiness is my priority," Fujitaka announced and he nodded his head at Sakura, who was currently staring at him. He had noticed that she was holding onto Syaoran's hands and their fingers were intertwined tightly in as much the same way as he often did with Nadeshiko. He smiled slightly at that. Syaoran would make a good choice for her daughter's husband. "If there is no violent objection, the wedding will take place tomorrow, in Kinomoto castle."

"W-wedding?" Sakura exclaimed, shooting a surprised glance at her father then at Syaoran. He was grinning from ear to ear at the announcement and it did not take much to know that he was pleased with the news.

"Yes, wedding," Syaoran affirmed, pressing a kiss on the top of Sakura's hand and causing her face to turn a deep shade of pink as she blushed madly at the open show of affections in front of so many people she knew. Even Yelan was looking at them with a twinkle in her eyes. "You'll be my wife tomorrow, _my princess_."

A delightful tingle shot through her body and made her feel weightless. She had to grip onto Syaoran's strong arm to steady herself in case she fainted from sheer happiness from the turn of events. She finally had her family back and she was going to be Syaoran's bride, could anyone be so lucky?

A loud cough sounded behind them and Touya forcefully stepped in between them, shooting his glares at Syaoran and trying to put more distance between him and his sister. No matter what, it still felt weird to be seeing one's sister with some other guys. It did not feel good.

"You do know that she's going to be my wife tomorrow," Syaoran warned, crossing his arms in front of him and trying to suppress his exasperation at this over-protective brother who just could not let his sister out of his sight or stand beside any guy besides him. "She'll be well taken care of, I promise."

"I don't care what your promise is," Touya retorted stubbornly. "As long as she is still my sister, you don't get a chance to be near standing near her."

"Touya 'nii-sama!"

Syaoran sighed and ran a hand through his hair in a show of impatience in the situation. "I'll not take her away from you, if that's what you are worrying about," he finally said and that got Touya's attention for he stopped trying to push Sakura behind his back. "At least for a few months after the wedding; I suppose mother will permit us to stay in Kinomoto castle for some time before going back to our own kingdom."

Yelan nodded in approval at her son's decision. "It's the least we can do for hogging onto Sakura for so long. At least she can spend some time with her family before coming back to live with us again."

"Thank you," Sakura sobbed openly, the tears rushing down like a bursting dam. Syaoran chuckled and pressed her face into the front of his shirt to shield her unglam face from her family, knowing she would feel aghast later on when she had fully recovered from her emotional outburst.

"It's all right," Syaoran assured her family when they looked alarmed. "She'll be fine after she is done. She can be a crybaby at times like this."

He felt a light punch on his back and chuckled when Sakura protested in the midst of her tears. "I'm not a _crybaby_!"

"All right, you're not. You're not," he placated teasingly and prompted everyone to laugh at their silly banter.

* * *

"To think that I was in the way of your relationship with Prince Li," Ayumi commented as she worked diligently on Sakura's bridal dress together with Tomoyo, who had designed in the moment she saw Sakura at the Hiiragizawa castle. The whole dress was sewn in less than half a day and it was a satisfying task for Tomoyo. "I'm so ashamed of myself."

"Don't blame yourself; you were under the impression that you are engaged to Syaoran and it can't be helped what you were feeling at that point in time. Also, I don't blame you so please do stop trying to make yourself suffer for something that is not your fault," Sakura replied hastily and waving her hands around wildly.

"Stop moving around, Sakura-chan! Or you'll risk poking yourself with one of my pins," Tomoyo admonished. "Keep still so that I can put on my special creation on you! I just have to make these final adjustments to make it perfect. STOP MOVING!"

"Tomo-chan is scary when she's angry," Sakura mocked cried and induced laughters from Ayumi. "Scary right?"

"You haven't seen the worst of me yet," Tomoyo replied dryly and pursed her lips when Sakura was not still enough in her own opinion. "Just a tiny stitch and it'll be done… Yes! Perfect!"

Sakura twirled around in the traditional wedding dress that Tomoyo had made for her. It was a beautiful piece of Kimono in her favourite colour. The elaborate cherry blossom design on the Kimono made her smile as she fingered them gently. Her face lit up in a bright smile when a knock sounded on her door and Syaoran stepped in. Sakura sucked in a breath her handsome husband-to-be dressed in similarly designed yukata and obviously the handiwork of Tomoyo. She blushed prettily as Syaoran continued to gawk at her, as if he had never seen such a beautiful lady before, not that she was the boasting kind of lady. But still, he made her feel pretty.

"Stop drooling over her and get in already!" Eriol said behind him and shoved Syaoran into the room. The latter stumbled and righted himself almost immediately, though his eyes never left Sakura. Eriol made a disgusted sound at his cousin before striding over to where his wife was. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, mindful of the audience, and whispered something into her ears that made her blush. Ayumi did not want to know what he had just said to her. The two couples made her roll her eyes at their infatuations with their other half and she excused herself from the little party, saying that Yukito might need her help at the physician's room.

"Come, my dear wife," Syaoran urged and grinned when Sakura came to him, putting her hand shyly into his as he led her out of the room to the throne room where everybody was waiting for them. "It's a miracle to call you my _wife_, Sakura."

"It's the same for me," Sakura murmured and kept her eyes downcast, too shy to meet her husband's heated gaze. "So… After all those years that we've been living together, we are finally going to be married. It seems unreal to me…"

Without warning, Syaoran stopped the both of them and pressed a hard kiss on her lips. Sakura's mind whirled at the intensity of the kiss and was left breathless when Syaoran finally separated from her with a smirk. "You call this unreal? I'll be glad to remind you the reality every time you think otherwise."

"You are teasing me!" Sakura protested with a pout and Syaoran chuckled.

Syaoran suddenly turned serious as he looked at Sakura, tipping her chin up so that she would look into his eyes when she looked away. "This is our _destiny_, Sakura. We belong together."

Sakura could feel her cheeks getting warmer under his gaze and she nodded in reply, a smile slowly appearing on her face. "Forever?"

"Forever," Syaoran promised. "Come, let's go declare to the world that you will be my wife!"

Sakura laughed delightfully as Syaoran led her to the throne room, where their family and friends unite to hear their solemn vows of love to each other and teased them mercilessly about their future together as husband and wife.

**~* The End *~**

* * *

**This is really the end for Destiny. Again, thanks for reading it and following me for sooooooo long!**

**I'll be glad if you could leave a review for me as it'll really help me to improve on my writing skills! Don't feel bad about leaving negative comments, it's a learning experience for me. ^_^**

**Thanks for the 9 years of writing. Had lots of fun!**

**Do visit my website for my upcoming updates!**


End file.
